Love of a Brother, Purity of a Sister
by Black Raider
Summary: Love? What good is love for? Surely it's not so important, especially for him. He wants to be worthy of being called a "man." Now he's stuck in another form with a cat who couldn't be more annoying...or charming. Is love really so wrong? Or is it the one thing he's always needed?
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter One**

_This is a story from long ago, when the Digimon Sovereigns themselves used to come down and roam our lands. It's the story of my two brothers and me. When the three of us were young, we were taught that the world is full of magic. The source of this magic is the ever-changing lights that dance across the sky. The shaman woman of our village told us that these lights are the spirits of our ancestors and that they have the power to make changes in our world. Small things become big. Winter turns to spring. One thing always changes into another._

A lone figure climbed a mountain path, dressed in a hooded cloak, pants, and boots to keep out the cold. Even with her fur, the chilling mountain air sometimes became too much for her. But as she reached the top of the mountain, she felt a smile grow on her face. Pulling down her hood, she allowed the magical lights in the sky to bathe her face, highlighting her vixen features.

Renamon smiled at the Lights that Touched the Earth, watching the shadows dancing across them. Shadows of other Digimon and spirits, long since or recently passed. Streams of blue light came down and swirled around her, melting away the snow around her and growing flowers from the ground so she stood in a circle of spring while everything else was winter. Smiling still, Renamon knelt down and picked up a seemingly random stone. She imagined the stone's future owner in her heart, and offered the stone up to the lights. Smaller streams of blue light came down now, taking the stone and beginning its transformation.

_But the greatest change I ever saw was that of my brother: a boy who desperately wanted to be a man._

* * *

His feet tapped almost rhythmically as he ran, and he panted a bit heavily. But there was a huge smile on his face, despite the danger he was in. Finally, he spotted two lone figures leaning on canoes up ahead. Both had golden blonde hair and cerulean eyes, except the older one of them grew out his hair a bit longer than the other. The older boy dressed all in black: his pants, boots, long-sleeved tunic, belt, even the furred cape around his shoulders. The other boy wore black boots, gray pants, a dark blue tunic, and black belt.

"Get down!" he shouted, startling the two figures a bit.

"What?" the older boy murmured, he and his brother staring at the boy running towards them. The boy's hair shined black as raven feathers, his eyes a sparkling dark lavender. His tunic and pants were silvery gray and he wore a black belt and boots.

"Get down! Get down!" the raven-haired boy urged, still running towards them. Suddenly, the two boys became aware of a stampeding herd of Moosemon right behind their oncoming companion.

"Ken!" the younger boy yelped as he and his brother dived behind the safety of the canoes. The third boy, Ken, jumped after them and they pressed themselves against the canoes, allowing the Moosemon to jump over them and continue running. Ken whooped and laughed, even if his brothers didn't seem to find the situation fun at all. Finally, the last Moosemon jumped over their heads and left the boys panting heavily from the shock.

Ken laughed. "_Never _try to milk a Moosemon." The younger blonde suddenly tackled Ken, sending them tumbling across the ground while the older blonde just shook his head. Finally, the blonde managed to pin Ken to the ground and started gathering spit in his mouth. "No, no. Don't! Don't!" Ken pleaded as the saliva dripped dangerously close to him. "No, come on! Don't! No, no, no!"

"Hey! Will you two knock it off?" The older blonde grabbed his younger counterpart by his collar, yanking him off Ken but stopping Ken from attacking. He held each boy under an arm in twin headlocks.

"It's all right, Yamato." Ken assured. "After today, he won't treat me like _that _anymore."

"Oh right, the big manhood ceremony!" the younger blonde said in fake enthusiasm. "It doesn't matter what the Sovereigns say. You'll always be our baby brother."

"Oh yeah?" Ken scoffed. "Well, wait until I get my totem."

"Baby brother!" the blonde teased, only to start their fighting again. Yamato sighed and knocked the two boys' heads together, ending the bickering.

"Hey, I said 'knock it off.'" Yamato ordered. "Now the quicker we get these fish, the faster we're going to get to your ceremony. So let's all just try and get along for a few hours." He looked to the younger blonde. "Okay, Takeru?"

"Whatever you say." Takeru agreed, making slightly choking noises.

"Okay Ke—" Yamato turned, only to see his youngest brother seemed to have slipped from his grasp.

"So what are we waiting for?" Ken called from his canoe, already paddling into the nearby river. Yamato looked to Takeru, still struggling in his hold, before letting go and allowing him to fall to the ground. The three boys laughed and whooped as they boarded their respective canoes, paddling down the river towards the fishing grounds.

It would take another couple hours to reach the fishing grounds, and then a few days to get back to the village where they lived. The shaman woman of the village would be returning any day now, having walked to the mountain where the Sovereign's Lights touched to the earth to get Ken's totem. The village of Odaiba stood in the middle of the wilderness, resting at the bottom of a small mountain that housed a cave they used for ceremonies such as this. Continuing a tradition that stretched back generations, the cave was painted with drawings that resembled holy areas and Digimon. Though many Digimon were needed by the village for clothes, food, and other supplies, their value was not unnoticed. By the laws of the Sovereigns themselves, all lives of Digimon are to be respected and cherished. This respect passed on into the totems everyone in the village received: a special trait meant to guide that person through their life. It was a very important ceremony, and finally Ken had come of age. When he finally reached twelve, he became old enough to receive his totem from the Sovereigns. It had been the one thing he waited for his entire life, and he felt that nothing could stand in the way. He just wanted to get those dang fish and get back to the village before the shaman woman got there. Still, that didn't stop the raven-haired boy from pulling off his antics such as riding a Unimon around until he hit a low tree branch and was knocked off.

After quite a few days of riding the rivers, the three brothers caught sight of the cave, where everyone prepared for the ceremony. Ken never felt so happy to row himself to shore, pulling his canoe up and taking a basket of fish over to a nearby tree to secure it.

"Ken! Ken!" several young children called for the boy excitedly as they approached. Like Ken, many of the children were excited to get their totems when they reached the right age.

"Ken, are you excited about getting your Spirit Rock today?" a girl asked.

"It's not a rock." Ken laughed. "It'll be my totem." The kids "oohh-ed" in awe as Ken tied a rope to the basket of fish and began hauling it up into the tree. "Yeah, I'll probably get, like, a Leomonfor bravery, or strength, or greatness. You know, something that fits me."

"How about a Greymonfor your fat head?" Takeru joked before turning serious. "Make sure you get that basket tied up."

"Don't worry." Ken assured. "No stupid Beast or Majin's going to get anywhere near this fish."

"Just tie it up." Takeru snapped before marching off. Ken mimicked his brother, sticking out his tongue before returning to his work. Suddenly, shouts came from nearby villagers: the shaman woman returned.

"Come on!" Yamato urged, he and everyone else running towards the cave.

"Come on, Ken, let's go!" the little girl laughed as she and the kids followed. "Rena's got your rock! Come on!"

"Come on, come on!" Ken growled, furiously trying to finish the knot. When he had it done, he hurriedly ran after the others. But a _thud _caught his attention and he turned to see the basket of fish fallen from the tree. He looked back and forth from the ceremony to the fish for only a moment before waving it off and sprinting towards the cave. _No Digimon is stupid enough to come near the village._

After hours of preparation, the cave finally looked ready for the ceremony. The pictures received a fresh coat of paint, the floor swept as much as it could be, and a pyre built in the center of the room. As the village gathered, everyone began talking or dancing or playing music, the usual proceedings before the shaman woman came to start the real ceremony. Ken stayed by the walkway, waiting anxiously before he caught sight of yellow and white. He shouted excitedly, and the villages gathered to greet the shaman woman. They made a pathway for her as Renamon stepped past, the first Digimon shaman woman in a human village. Renamon no longer dressed in her winter clothes, her fur freshly combed and shining in the light of the torch she carried. When she reached the pyre, she threw the torch to the wood and it erupted into flames. Everyone cheered loudly for a moment before bowing in respect, as every ceremony went.

"Rena! Renamon!"

Renamon looked down at the voice and chuckled at the sight of a small human girl, reaching up and wanting to be held. "Well, hello there, sweetheart!" Renamon gladly lifted the girl into her arms. "What a big girl!" She swung the child around for a moment, earning a round of delighted cooing before placing the girl on her shoulders. Renamon turned to speak to the villagers, who sat down and waited patiently for her speech. "When each of us comes of age, the Sovereigns reveal to us a totem that helps guide us through our lives. Some of us use courage to guide us." The vixen looked to a young man only a few years older than Yamato. "Others, patience." Renamon handed the child back to her mother. "And, some of us, beauty." She looked proud at that last one, causing light laughter to rise from the crowd and herself. Renamon knelt down by the pyre, calling out to the man of the hour. "Ken."

Ken tried to not hurry, but he couldn't contain his happiness as he knelt down before Renamon. The fox took some paint from a bowl near her and dipped her fingers in it, carefully drawing a symbol on Ken's forehead.

"You nervous?" Renamon whispered.

"Excited." Ken breathed.

Renamon tried to keep her giggles quiet. "You should be. It's a good one." That only made Ken's excitement grow as Renamon raised her voice for everyone to hear, Ken included. "Ken, I have been to the Mountain Where the Lights Touch the Earth and the Sovereign Digimon have revealed to me your totem. To become a man, your actions must be guided by one thing." Renamon reached into the bag beside her and pulled out something wrapped in a cloth. Everyone leaned forward expectantly, wondering what the Sovereigns chose this time. Renamon began unfolding the cloth. "Your totem is…."

Ken's eyes grew and sparkled with every second he had to wait, his gaze locked on the cloth in Renamon's paws. Surely the Sovereigns chose something fitting for him. Something that meant power or strength or greatness or—

"Love!"

His thoughts skidded to a halt when he saw what rested in the cloth: a stone in an elegant shape that resembled a flame, with a skull in the core of the fire. A brown cord connected to it. Ken's mind went blank for a moment. "What?"

"Yes, love." Renamon assured, putting the necklace around the boy's neck.

Ken took the totem in his hand and stared at it with a mix of surprise and slight disappointment. "The Majin of Love?"

"A love that connects and unites all living things." Renamon explained.

Ken didn't quite hear her, too busy giving his brothers an "Are you kidding me?" look. Takeru struggled to hold back his laughs while Yamato just shrugged. "Who wants to trade?" Ken asked quietly.

Renamon suddenly grabbed Ken's jaw and pulled him forward. "There is no trading!" She bonked him on the head, but then smiled and took his hands in her paws. "Ken, just as Majin are the most unique of Digimon, Love is the most precious of totems. It reveals itself in unexpected ways. Let love guide your actions. Then one day, you'll be a man and will place your mark next to those of our ancestors."

At that, Ken looked to the wall that held said marks. Ken walked up to the wall, staring at the multitudes of handprints. He looked to his own hand. How badly he wished he could be up there; to walk amongst the villagers and say "I did it. I became a man." Or, even better, "I became a man at a younger age than anyone else." But this totem….surely there had to be a mistake. Except the Sovereign Digimon don't make mistakes. Renamon walked up to Ken, taking the boy's hand and raising it triumphantly. The village erupted into cheers, alleviating some of Ken's nerves.

But something still wouldn't sit right, even after Renamon pulled him into a comforting hug.

* * *

Once the ceremony finished, everyone walked off to prepare for the dinner they would have that evening to celebrate. Ken absent-mindedly joined the group heading towards the river to get the fish. The entire walk there, he couldn't stop holding his totem in his hand and staring at it, wondering if the Sovereigns tried to tell him something.

"There he is! Come here, Lover Boy!"

Ken groaned as Takeru came up, pulling the raven-haired boy into a side hug. The young blonde had yet to stop ribbing Ken for his totem. Ken pulled himself out of his brother's grasp. "Leave me alone."

"Aw, Ken, wait." Takeru pleaded, sounding sincere this time. "I'm sorry."

"What?" Ken asked, turning to his older brother.

"Your totem—I think it's really great." Takeru shrugged.

"You do?" Ken was beginning to think Takeru was hit on the head recently.

"Yeah." Takeru reached into his pocket. "And I made you something."

"Really?" the hopeful look on Ken's face died when Takeru suddenly plopped a crown of flowers on his head.

"Now when you skip around loving everybody, you'll smell so sweet!" Takeru laughed, only for Ken to shove the flowers back at him.

"Well, isn't this nice?" Yamato chuckled as he approached them. "Instead of fighting, you're giving each other flowers."

"Yeah, isn't it lovely?" Takeru laughed, tossing flowers all around Ken. "He's so in touch with his totem already." He continued to laugh, even when Ken elbowed him in the chest.

Yamato rolled his eyes. "Hey, oh Holy One, go take care of the fish."

"Sure." Takeru shrugged, skipping off and tossing flowers everywhere. "Ken loves me, he loves me not. Ken loves me, he loves me not. Ken loves me…."

Ken, beginning to fume with anger, picked up a rock and aimed to throw it. Yamato was quick to stop him. "Ken…."

Ken sighed in frustration. "Someday, I'm going to just…..he's just such a…."

Yamato chuckled and lightly smacked his brother upside the head, taking the rock from his hands. "Hey, bonehead, just because his totem is the Angel of Wisdom doesn't mean he's wise. I mean, look at him."

They watched as Takeru accidently danced a little too close to a Seasarmon tied to a post, which began barking at him and making him jump back. When some girls waved at him, he tried to play it cool only to step backwards towards Seasarmon and having the dog bite him in a very uncomfortable spot. His brothers winced in sympathy but laughed at his misfortune.

"Yeah….." Ken chucked. "I guess the Sovereigns messed up on both of our totems."

"You know, I felt the same way when Renamon gave me mine." Yamato said, tossing the rock away as they continued walking.

"Get out of here." Ken scoffed, not believing it. His eldest brother, Yamato, not sure of something?

"No, really." Yamato nodded, taking out his totem from under his collar. His was much simpler: it resembled a wolf with stripes on its back, similar to Garurumon. "I said, 'The Wolf of Guidance? What does that mean?' But now that I'm older, I know it's about being a leader." He tucked the totem away and tousled his brother's hair. "And keeping an eye on you two."

Ken let out a legitimate laugh, but his face fell into worry. "I just want to get my handprint on that wall."

"Just be patient, Ken." Yamato assured. "When you live by your totem, you will."

Ken smiled. "Really?"

"Guarantee it." Yamato nodded, holding up his hand.

Ken chuckled and they clapped their hands together, his worries beginning to diminish. "But, come on…." He held up his totem. "The Majin of Love? Majin are like Beast Digimon. They don't love anyone. They don't think. They don't feel. I mean they're—" They stopped suddenly when they noticed a group of people chattering worriedly, but what caught their attention was the Beast Digimon tracks leading into the forest. A few stray fish lay on the ground. "They're thieves!"

"You didn't tie it up, did you?" Takeru asked, holding up the severed rope that supposedly kept the basket of fish safe. Ken realized his mistake, and he chuckled nervously. Takeru was less than pleased. "You should've got the totem of pinheads!"

"Knock it off!" Yamato ordered before another fight could begin. "We'll just make another basket."

"'We'?" Takeru scoffed. "Oh no. No. It took me two weeks to make that basket! You get Lover Boy to do it. He's the one that's messing things up all the time. Typical Ken!"

Ken glared angrily, his fists clenching as he walked to a pile of weapons and scooped up a spear. "All right! I'll go get your basket." He growled and muttered to himself as he marched into the forest, following the tracks.

"Ken, wait! Ken!" Yamato called, only for his cries to fall on deaf ears. He turned and frowned at Takeru, crossing his arms.

"What?" Takeru shrugged innocently.

* * *

**A/N: In case you didn't realize, this is the "Brother Bear" movie adapted to the Digimon universe! Recently I took about two dozen movies and made a list of Digimon characters that would match up with the movie's characters. The "Brother Bear" one really caught my eye, so here's the movie! Hope you enjoy!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two**

Ken followed the tracks for most of the afternoon, deeper and deeper into the forest before reaching a small mountain. Still, he kept going, climbing up the rocks and keeping the tracks in his sight. By the looks of the paw-like tracks, no doubt they belonged to a Beast Digimon. The only question: which one? What type of Beast Digimon would be brave enough to venture so close to the village, even with everyone up at the cave for the ceremony? Ken couldn't really think about it; his brother's words echoed in his head. _I'll show him. I don't mess up everything. Yeah, this is my fault, but I'm fixing it! I'll get that basket and then shove it right—_

He paused as he caught sight of something up ahead, and he hurried over to discover the basket of fish. Or, rather, what was left of it. The Beast Digimon that stole it clearly was smart enough to take the entire basket, but once it got a safe distance it completely shredded the woven basket beyond repair. Scraps of fish lay around it. Ken, his anger rising, growled to himself as he kicked at the broken basket pieces around him. He turned to march back to the village, wondering how he would escape Takeru's nagging when he found out his basket was trashed.

Ken froze at the sound of a growl, and he spun around to see a Digimon on the rocks several feet away from him. The beast turned just enough for Ken to see the entire thing, and he realized it was a Holydramon. The pink, dragon-like Digimon sniffed the air, obviously having caught whiff of Ken as the boy approached. Having finally caught up to the fish thief, Ken scooped up a rock and threw it at the Holydramon, missing his target but certainly catching its attention. Ken threw another rock, this time nailing Holydramon in the snout. The Beast Digimon snarled and hissed at the boy, its claws flexing and muscles tensing.

A little ways down the mountain, Yamato and Takeru followed the tracks that would hopefully lead them to their brother. Each boy carried a spear in hand, just in case. "Ken! Ken!" Yamato called. He sighed at the lack of response. "Where'd he go?"

"If we're lucky, far away." Takeru huffed, still mad at his younger brother. Takeru had never been good at weaving, but he was the one chosen to make that basket to keep their food safe and he worked so hard to do it right. Now, thanks to his moron little brother, all that work was for nothing. If that Digimon didn't give Ken a run for his money, Takeru would surely—"

"_Aah!"_

Takeru and Yamato looked up in surprise as Ken suddenly fell off a cliff above them, landing on a small ledge. Instantly, Takeru's anger turned to worry. "Ken!"

When Ken realized the limited space he had to stand, he immediately pressed himself to the rock wall and prayed the Holydramon didn't come after him. "Ken!" The boy looked up to see Yamato reaching down towards him.

"Yamato, no!" Ken urged. "Y-you got to get out of here!"

"What?" Yamato's eyebrows furrowed in confusion and worry.

"The Holydramon!" Ken called. "Look behind you!"

Yamato obeyed, only to fall flat on his back at the sight of said Holydramon, currently reared up on its back legs and roaring at him.

"Hey Holydramon!" Takeru shouted, throwing rocks at the Beast Digimon and drawing its attention to him. "Come on, over here! Come on, Holydramon, come this way!" The Holydramon, still snarling, dropped down to all fours and began advancing towards Takeru, the blonde boy backing up and giving Yamato the time he needed to haul Ken up on solid ground. The two of them grabbed their spears and charged towards Takeru and Holydramon, currently fighting atop a glacier attached to the mountain. Takeru swiped and stabbed his weapon towards the Digimon, but Holydramon swiped its claws and continued to roar. It managed to catch Takeru with its claws and sent him flying to one side, his back breaking through a thin patch of ice and leaving him dangling over a pit so deep he couldn't see the bottom. He kept a tight grip on his spear, desperately trying to climb back up. Yamato charged for Holydramon, beating it back towards the edge of the glacier while Ken ran towards his brother.

"Takeru!" Ken cried, jumping forward just as Takeru's spear broke and catching the boy's arm. "Hold on!"

"Come on, pull!" Takeru urged, trying to climb back up. Ken kept a tight grip on his brother, but both of them kept slipping on the ice and Takeru couldn't get the proper footing to climb out.

Yamato skillfully ducked as Holydramon's claws whooshed past his head. He smacked the Beast Digimon with his spear and jabbed the blade towards it, but Holydramon still came. Still, the Beast Digimon had to admit that this human was a much better fighter than some of the others it fought before. Yamato heard a cry and turned with wide eyes to see Ken still trying to pull Takeru from the hole. Unfortunately, that moment of distraction allowed Holydramon to slam Yamato into the ground, knocking the wind out of him and leaving him on the ice. Holydramon looked in the direction of Ken and Takeru, stalking over towards them and panting a little. Shaking, Yamato took his spear and struggled to lift himself upright. He looked towards Holydramon, watching it advance towards his brothers. He didn't know if the Beast Digimon would take off into the woods or attack the boys, but Yamato wouldn't take that chance. But how to stop it? The sound of something cracking caught his attention, and Yamato looked to see a perfect trail of broken ice leading towards the Holydramon. If he didn't act now, he'd lose his chance to save his brothers.

Shouting in effort, Yamato rose to his knees and raised his spear high, stabbing it down into the crack and jerking the staff to one side.

The force of it caused the ice to crack and break right under the Holydramon's feet, the Beast pausing and looking down in shock. Ken finally managed to haul Takeru up and the two of them stared in shock at what their brother just did. Said brother still sat at the edge of the ice, too far away to get to safety.

"Yamato…" Ken breathed. "Yamato!"

"Yamato!" Takeru screamed.

Yamato looked up, his eyes full of apology and love, and he tightened his grip on his spear.

The ice finally broke apart and began cascading down into the water below. Holydramon desperately tried to escape the avalanche of ice, but missed a jump and could only scrape at the ice with its claws before falling down with Yamato. The ice crashed into the lake at the bottom of the mountain, the reverberating sound scaring some bird Digimon from their spots in the trees. Takeru and Ken hurried to the edge of the glacier, staring down at the carnage.

"Yamato?" Takeru tried to shout, but his voice cracked.

Holydramon suddenly burst from the water, gasping a bit and roaring. It looked up to the boys and roared, as though irritated with them, before climbing up to the shore. Shaking itself of the water, the Beast Digimon roared at them a final time and then disappeared into the forest.

The shock of what happened left as fast as it came. "Come on!" Ken urged, leading the way as the boys hurried down the cliff side. Once reaching the water, they immediately jumped in and began calling for their brother. Ken was the first to find the broken shaft and head of Yamato's spear, but they continued searching. They didn't care that the water become colder and colder as the sun began to set. All they cared about was finding their brother.

Takeru jumped over a chunk of ice, looking around before freezing. "Ken!"

Ken whipped around and ran over to join his brother, both of them staring at something in the water: a black-furred cape. Ken hurriedly waded over to it, lifting the cloth into his hands. But at the sight of the large tear in the cloth, he realized his brother was not attached to it. His fists clenched around the soaking wet fabric. "No…" He tossed the torn cape aside and kept wading in the water. "Yamato! _Yamato!"_

Takeru lifted the torn cape into his hands, and the realization dawned on him. Their brother sacrificed himself to save them. They'd never find him again, and if they did, it wouldn't be a happy reunion. Takeru bowed his head, closing his eyes to keep the tears at bay.

Yamato was dead.

* * *

The funeral was held a few nights later, after Takeru and Ken returned home to report what happened. A group of the villagers returned to the spot to find Yamato's body, but all they could find was his totem.

The night of the funeral, everyone in the village carried torches up to the cave to light the way. Renamon created a funeral pyre, her eyes glassy with unshed tears. Takeru and Ken walked through the aisle of people, handing Renamon the only things they had left of Yamato: his broken spear, torn cape, and Wolf of Guidance totem. Renamon wrapped them all together nicely, the totem hung over the top. She sprinkled the items with a strange dust before taking it to the pyre, gently setting it amongst the wood and antlers. Takeru and Ken stood with Renamon before the fire, watching as it was lit and took the offering with it. Renamon made a few motions with her hands, and sparks from the fire flew up towards the Sovereign Lights that danced above them, giving Yamato's spirit to the Sovereigns. Ken watched the sparks go and disappear, and suddenly his anger returned. He marched off, leaving Takeru as the blonde mourned for his elder brother. Takeru remained at the burning pyre, even after everyone else left and the flames smoldered down into burning embers. Renamon patted the blonde's shoulder comfortingly, walking off to mourn herself. In Takeru's mind, he wondered what could've been done differently to stop this from happening. It could have been anything, from Yamato choosing to not crack the ice to Takeru not getting so angry at Ken to Ken just remembering to tie up the basket.

"You ready?"

Takeru jumped a little and turned to see Ken standing behind him, holding two spears in his hand. "For what?"

"We're going after the Holydramon." Ken replied simply, tossing his brother a spear.

Takeru caught the weapon, but he only sighed. "I know what you're feeling, but…but killing that Digimon is wrong." He tossed the spear to the ground.

"Wrong?" Ken repeated angrily. "Our brother is dead and it's because of _that_ monster!"

"I don't blame the Holydramon, Ken." Takeru snapped.

Ken seemed surprised, but took a good guess that Takeru partially blamed him for Yamato's death. The raven-haired boy's eyes fell into a glare. "I see.

Takeru looked away, regretting his words. He gently took a hold of the spear in Ken's hand. "Killing that Holydramon won't make you a man."

Ken jerked away from him. "Oh _now _you're trying to be wise?"

"I'm trying to follow my totem!" Takeru shouted. "Why can't you do the same?!"

"You really think love has anything to do with being a man?" Ken scoffed. "A man wouldn't just sit here and do nothing." He turned to march off, but Takeru caught his arm.

"Ken, don't upset the Sovereigns." Takeru warned.

Ken scoffed again. "Sovereigns. Thanks for your _wisdom._" He pulled away and turned to walk off, only to stop at the sight of Renamon. The fox Digimon stared at Ken worriedly, but the boy took out his totem and tore it free from his neck, tossing it into the embers before hurrying off. Renamon stared after the boy for a moment, picking up his discarded totem and gingerly brushing it off. She looked to Takeru.

The blonde stared back, unsure what to do. But it soon became clear. "I've got to stop him." He took Ken's totem from Renamon and scooped up the spear he previously rejected, running after his brother.

Renamon stared after them, her heart heavy. She looked to the sky. "You left too soon, Yamato. Your brothers need your guidance." She felt a soft wind blow through her fur, and the Sovereign Lights appeared in the sky once more.

* * *

**A/N: What do you think? Look good so far? Just wait until the next chapter!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three**

Ken prided himself in being a pretty decent hunter in the village. Once he found the place where Yamato died, he very quickly found the Holydramon tracks that led into the forest. He followed them diligently, not paying attention to anything else. The Digimon in the forest watched curiously as the human tore through the woods, not even pausing. Many scurried away in fear, only to stare in confusion as the hunter passed by them without a glance. Ken's travels took a day or two, leading through the forests and over the rocky waterfalls and then back into the forest. He didn't know how far he traveled from the village, but he didn't really care.

When he came across a tree with strange claw marks in it, he knew at once it had to be the Holydramon. His pace quickened, a feeling in his stomach telling him he was close. He jumped off a small cliff and landed smoothly in a thicket of berry bushes, holding his spear ready and looking around for any sign of movement. But the air was silent, save for the rushing water of a nearby river and the bird Digimon chirping. Ken looked down to the ground and saw more tracks, but he was forced to duck when he heard branches snapping. He took a breath, preparing himself to battle the beast that stole his brother. His muscles tensed as he snuck through the thicket, getting closer and closer to his target. Ken slowly raised himself above the bushes…only to find a Tentomon on a rock. The bug Digimon stared at Ken curiously. Ken felt a little relieved, but also frustrated. He jabbed his spear towards the Tentomon, who yelped and flew away. Ken looked around, but saw no other signs of life. He stabbed his spear into the dirt and plopped himself down, pulling some berries off a branch to eat.

A roar made him gasp and spin around, catching sight of the Holydramon right behind him. The Beast Digimon stood on its hind legs, looking around. Ken pressed himself further under the bushes, eyeing his spear that lay several feet from him. He inched towards it, reaching for the weapon only to break a twig under his knee. Holydramon sniffed the air and suddenly began roaring again. Ken panted a little, his heart rate quickening. But he lunged with a yell and grabbed his spear, holding it ready for battle.

The Holydramon had disappeared.

Ken heard a growl, and he turned to see the Holydramon running off. Glaring fiercely, the boy gave chase. The dragon-like Digimon tried to take off flying, but Ken threw his spear skillfully and the blade sliced across Holydramon's wings, where the feathery appendages connected with its furry body. The Digimon screeched in pain and hit the ground. It tried to flap its wings, only to growl in pain and hit the ground again. The Holydramon took off running, Ken right behind it as he scooped up his fallen spear. Once he broke the thicket, the chase led into the cluster of small mountains nearby. Holydramon ran as fast as it could over the rocks and moss, desperately trying to escape the hunter it recognized. Ken always stayed close behind, his feet tapping rhythmically on the rocks as he ran. He lost sight of it once, but heard the Beast Digimon growling in desperation and fear and followed it. But when he reached the dead end where he'd hoped to find the beast, it was nowhere in sight. The sound of paws on rocks made Ken spin around and he saw the Holydramon making its way up the mountain. Smirking triumphantly, Ken started up the other way, following a similar path but keeping his eyes on the Digimon. Holydramon continued to run, not looking back for a second, but soon was forced to skid to a halt at the sight of a sheer drop-off. Ken reached the top of another small mountain and leaped across to the one the Holydramon stood on. Holydramon spun around, realizing it was cornered. But the Beast Digimon snarled and prepared to face the hunter. Ken kept his spear ready, prepared to avenge his brother.

Meanwhile, Takeru had tracked Ken as best he could, carrying a satchel of supplies, his spear, and a cloak around his shoulders. He followed his brother's trail all the way to the thicket of berry bushes. He knelt down to inspect the fresh tracks, only to gasp at the sight of the equally fresh Holydramon tracks beside his brother's. Takeru took off, desperate to reach his brother before he reached the Holydramon.

Ken kept his eyes on Holydramon as the Beast Digimon walked back and forth in front of him, as though trying to figure out an escape. When that didn't work, Holydramon reared up on its hind legs and roared at Ken, hoping to scare him off. Though Ken felt a twinge of fear, his desire for revenge outweighed it. He ran forward and thrust his spear towards Holydramon, only for the Beast Digimon to grab the weapon in its teeth and swing Ken around, tossing him to the ground. Holydramon lunged for Ken, barely giving the boy enough time to hold up his spear and prevent the Digimon's teeth from getting him.

Takeru finally reached the mountainous areas, and when he heard the roars a tingle went up his spine. Turning, he gasped at the sight of Ken fighting with Holydramon. "Ken…" He hurriedly slid down a decline of rocks, desperate to reach his brother.

Ken struggled to get the hulking Digimon off him, keeping a tight grip on his spear. But he was finally forced to let go and ducked under Holydramon's legs, running as far as he could from the Digimon. Holydramon tossed the spear aside, charging towards the boy. Ken climbed up a larger rock, feeling Holydramon's hot breath against his back. He managed to get to the top before Holydramon could get him, but the Beast Digimon suddenly pounded against the rock and began breaking it. Ken did everything he could to stay on, staring fearfully at the rocks and water below him that spelled certain death should he fall. He glanced back towards his fallen spear. Gathering his bravery and relying only on adrenaline, Ken jumped off the rock and tumbled down Holydramon's back, scrambling towards his weapon. Holydramon charged for him, roaring the entire way. The Digimon leaped towards Ken, who shouted in fear as he held up his spear to defend himself.

Takeru jumped at the sound of the Holydramon's roar echoing through the air.

Ken groaned as he pulled himself and his spear out from under the Holydramon, panting as he stared at the Beast Digimon. He hardly noticed the thick storm clouds gathering above him nor the thunder that began resonating through the air. The raven-haired boy stared at Holydramon, waiting for the beast to move. But Holydramon laid very still; even its chest didn't move from breathing.

Holydramon was dead.

Ken stared at the ground, still panting. He did it. He avenged his brother. He finally killed this murderous beast. Everything he did had paid off.

But Yamato would never return.

Ken let out an anguished scream, the sound echoing through the pass and to Takeru. The blonde's heart leaped to his throat, and he desperately quickened his pace.

Ken remained kneeling on the ground, panting heavily. Somehow, he felt totally and completely empty. He lost his brother, but he killed the Holydramon. Still, Takeru wouldn't be pleased. Nor Renamon. Had he made a mistake? Did he really care?

He couldn't think about it for long; strange blue lights suddenly appeared around him. Ken looked around and discovered the streams of blue lights stretched down from the sky, and voices around him whispered indistinctly. Suddenly, a waterfall began falling towards him, and Ken hurriedly grabbed his spear and ran towards another rock, standing on it as the water cascaded around him. He gasped in shock, staring at the waters as they pooled around the area and spilled over the cliff edge. It certainly didn't look like normal water; for one thing, it glowed a soft blue.

Takeru looked all around, trying to find the mountain where he last saw his brother and Holydramon. Though he managed to spot the mountain, the top of it was shrouded in clouds and thunder began booming. Takeru sprinted to the mountain, praying he wasn't too late.

Ken, gathering his courage and giving in to curiosity, cautiously stepped into the ankle-high water and stepped towards the waterfall that still crashed into the mountain. Curious and a little fearful, Ken gently touched the waterfall with the point of his spear.

The falls exploded, revealing the Sovereign Lights in all their glory. Ken's jaw dropped as he stared at the lights, watching the shadows of Digimon pass through them. The roars and various sounds of the Digimon echoed into Ken's ears. Gomamon shadows passed by him, as though swimming in the air. Mammothmon stomped past, making him jump. Ankylomon and Unimon and Dobermon stampeded across the lights. Birdramon and Aquilamon and various other bird Digimon flew alongside each other. Seasarmon and Labramon shadows barked and danced all around him. It was incredible yet terrifying, to be this close to the lights. It was something only shaman women could do. Yet there Ken stood, amongst all the beauty of the Sovereign Lights.

Suddenly, a Garurumon bounded over to Ken, stopping right in front of him. Before his eyes, the spirit morphed into a familiar figure dressed all in black.

"Yamato?" Ken breathed.

Yamato, though looking as he normally did except with a golden glow and now more translucent, stared sadly at his youngest brother before looking to Holydramon. Ken followed his gaze to see Holydramon dissolve into light and become absorbed into the lights above, a final roar echoing out. Ken looked back to Yamato, to ask what was happening, but found his brother disappeared. Suddenly, Ken felt something lift him up into the sky, forcing him to drop his spear as he floated up and right in the middle of the lights. Yamato, in his Garurumon form, carried his brother gently in his teeth before letting go and allowing the raven-haired boy to float in the sky.

Takeru didn't know what was happening up there, but he had to get up fast. He tried using his spear to gain more leverage, only for it to break and leave him to free climb the rest of the way.

Yamato let out a howl, the beautiful sound echoing all around Ken. He suddenly noticed a shadow of an image appear around him, and the image seemed to become absorbed into himself. His senses went black, but he could feel the sensation of something gently lowering him back onto the stone. Ken's muscles trembled as he pushed himself to his feet. He felt something wooden in his hands; assuming it his spear, he used it to steady himself.

The Sovereign Lights disappeared, and the thunder and lightning storm burst through.

Takeru finally pulled himself up on the mountaintop as the rain came pouring down. He stood and looked around for his brother or the Holydramon, only to find someone completely different: a Digimon dressed in cream-colored coveralls with strange red designs and a few zippers, a red vest, and brown boots and gloves. A navy blue cape graced his shoulders and a cowl was wrapped around his mouth. A wide-brimmed wizard's hat rested in his long, straw-colored hair, currently tied back in a loose ponytail. He carried a staff in one hand, topped with an ornament in the shape of a sun.

A Wizarmon.

Takeru looked down and gasped in horror at the sight of Ken's spear and torn clothing. "No….." He looked back up to the Wizarmon and suddenly fell back, fearful of what the Majin Digimon would do. The Wizarmon turned to him, his dark jade eyes locking onto Takeru's cerulean ones, but the Digimon's vision blurred terribly. He stumbled back a bit, only to jump backwards when lightning struck close to them. His footing gave way and he fell backwards, shouting in surprise. But to Takeru, all he could hear was resounding thunder. Wizarmon hit a few rocks on the way down before crashing into the river. He desperately swam to the surface, trying to call for help. But his head hit another rock and he slipped into unconsciousness, the tide washing him ashore far away from the mountains.

* * *

**A/N: So I do want to clarify one thing: the Digimon do still have their powers. You'll see in later chapters why Holydramon couldn't fly away in the first fight against Ken, Yamato, and Takeru. Also, the Digimon can't talk to humans, and Majin Digimon like Wizarmon make sounds related to whatever element they control.**

**Until next time!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four**

Takeru's feet dragged across the stone as he approached what was left of his brother, feeling a sick sense of déjà vu. The rain soaked him to the bone, but it almost felt soothing compared to the pain in his heart. He fell to his knees, staring at the torn cloth and feeling his heart break. He gathered some of it in his hands, as though he would feel the warmth of his brother in it.

_I don't blame the Holydramon, Ken._

It didn't exactly make sense. What was that Wizarmon doing here? Did the Holydramon dedigivolve during the fight? No, that couldn't be it. Was this Wizarmon a friend of the Holydramon and came to help when it saw its friend in trouble? Did Ken try and kill the Wizarmon too, because he hated Majin like he hated Beast Digimon?

Did it really matter?

His brothers were dead. He was all alone now. Takeru sighed, standing and turning to go back to the village.

_A man wouldn't just sit here and do nothing._

Takeru paused, reaching into his pocket and pulled out Ken's totem. Hatred swelled in Takeru's heart. There was no one else to blame now; this was the fault of that Wizarmon, that _Majin. _Takeru decided he would not stand by and let this one get away with what it did. He scooped up Ken's fallen spear, tying the Majin of Love totem around it. He held the spear in a firm yet gentle grip, settling into his decision.

Takeru would avenge his brother's death.

* * *

The first things Ken became aware of were the sounds all around him: the river, the Biyomon tweeting in a nearby tree, and the various other creatures around him. Then he opened his eyes and discovered trees and the partly cloudy skies. He groaned, feeling like his head was being pounded on by rocks. He looked around, discovering he rested in the forest who-knows-where. But he wasn't alone.

"So, Ken, you've decided to join the living." Renamon laughed lightly as she stood from the riverbank, approaching Ken with a cold, wet rag and dabbing his forehead with it. "Well, that's quite a bump you've got there. That must've been some ride down those rapids, huh?" She returned to the river, dipping the rag into the waters.

"Renamon?" Ken breathed, sitting up with a groan and rubbing his head. He gasped. "Rena! You won't believe this! I-I was at the top of this huge rock and all of a sudden this huge….." Ken opened and closed his mouth a few times before reaching up to his lips. He jumped a little at the sight of gloves and a cowl, but he ignored it for now. He pulled off a glove and pulled down the cowl, touching something gracing his lips that felt suspiciously like thread. "Uh, Renamon? What is on my mouth?"

"Well don't mess with it." Renamon scolded gently. "There are many Majin Digimon with thread over their mouths. You should know that."

Ken cocked his head to one side like a confused Labramon. "Huh?" He crawled over to river and peered into the waters at his reflection. His eyes widened…his jade green eyes…..

Ken jumped back, staring at himself. Instead of his gray tunic and pants, he now wore coveralls, a cape, a cowl, gloves, and boots. A hat and staff rested off to one side, and he had a sneaking suspicion they belonged to him. His skin was gray and his hair much longer, now a golden blonde color like straw. He started hyperventilating a little at the realization.

He was a Wizarmon.

Renamon jumped as Ken let out a scream, the sound echoing throughout the forest and startling many other Digimon. "All right! All right!" She jumped as Ken/Wizarmon suddenly began ranting on, having a full-on freak-out session. He kept hitting himself and pulling at his clothes, as though hoping he would wake up from a bad dream. "Will you settle down?! Ken! Ken! Ken, Ken!" Renamon sighed. "This isn't going to work." She waited for Ken to come closer to her before sticking a foot out, tripping him and sending the boy-turned-Digimon to the ground. "Ken, listen to me! Yamato did this."

Wizarmon paused, looking to the sky and then back at Renamon. "But why? He knows I hate Majin."

Renamon didn't seem to be listening, almost inspecting and analyzing him as she got a good look at his clothes and tugged on his hair and skin a bit. She stared into his striking green eyes. "Hmm. Strange. Spirits don't usually make these kind of changes. Yamato must have something really big planned for you. You are going to get a whole new perspective on things."

"I highly doubt that." Wizarmon huffed. "The only new perspective I have is that I officially don't like my brother. He knows how much I don't like Majin and now look at me!"

"Hey, listen to me." Renamon spoke firmly, as though scolding a child. "You got yourself into this mess. If you want to change, take it up with your brother's spirit."

"Well how do I find him?" Wizarmon asked almost desperately. "He came to me this time."

"You'll find him on the Mountain Where the Lights Touch the Earth." Renamon instructed, sketching out said mountain in the sand. "He'll help you make up for what you've done wrong."

Wizarmon blinked, staring at the picture. "But I-I didn't do anything wrong." He looked up, only to discover Renamon disappeared. "Renamon? Renamon, w-wait! I didn't do anything wrong!" But Renamon was gone without a trace. "I don't even know how to get there." Wizarmon sighed, standing and staring at his reflection for a moment. The face of a Majin stared back. He sighed again, pulling on his discarded glove and placing his hat on his head. Scooping up his staff, he resolved to just walking and asking for directions when he needed it. Voices caught his attention, and he turned towards a nearby log. Curious, he stepped forward hoping to find somebody to help. But his eyes widened when he saw not humans, but Digimon on the other side of the log. A Wormmon and an Armadillomon to be exact. The Armadillomon's cheeks puffed out.

"They were right here a second ago, and now they're gone." Wormmon snapped.

"Yeah, that's pretty weird, huh?" Armadillomon shrugged.

"So you're telling me you didn't eat them, and you have no idea where they are?" Wormmon almost shouted. Armadillomon shook his head.

"Hey, hey you." Wizarmon's voice caught their attention. "You just talked."

The two smaller Digimon gulped. "J-just back away…..real slow-like." Wormmon instructed.

"How'd you do that?!" Wizarmon cried. Armadillomon suddenly spit out the seeds he had in his mouth and the two of them ran away, leaving Wizarmon confused for a moment. Then he remembered that he was a Digimon now; he could understand other Digimon.

"Are we there yet?"

"Don't make me turn this formation around!"

Wizarmon looked up to see a flock of Biyomon flying past. He desperately tried to follow. "Hey! Wait, wait, wait! Come back! I'm trying to find where the lights…" He sighed and slumped against a tree. _This is gonna be harder than I thought. Majin are almost like predators to most of the Digimon here. How am I supposed to get help if—_

"What's he getting all worked up about?"

"Gee, I don't know. Maybe the Biyomon pooped on him?"

Wizarmon looked up to see two Digimon a short distance away: one with a cloth body and a pumpkin for a head and another made completely out of rocks. They snickered, clearly amused by his misfortune, until they noticed he looked right at them.

"Oh, I think he's gonna come over here." The pumpkin head gulped. "Let's beat it!" They both tried running in certain directions, only to turn back around and run into each other. They fell to the ground in a daze.

"Hey!" Wizarmon called, running over to them. "You two!"

The two of them gasped. "Head down, head down!" The pumpkin urged, pulling his rock friend behind a log.

"I think he's seen us. Now what?"

"Act like we're not here."

"We're not here!"

"Shh! What are you doing?!"

Wizarmon finally reached the log and peered into a hole in the wood, staring at the two Digimon cowering inside. They muttered and quivered, their eyes squeezed shut. "Um, excuse me." He jumped as the Digimon screamed and fell backwards, hugging each other. Wizarmon stood and stared at them.

"Please don't eat us!" the pumpkin pleaded

"You wouldn't like us!" the rock Digimon added. "We're really gamey!"

"Yeah, he's rocks-for-brains over there!" the pumpkin chimed in.

The rock Digimon frowned. "Oh nice, pumpkin breath."

"Hard head."

"Stem head."

"Big foot!"

The rocky Digimon gasped, his lower lip trembling a bit. His pumpkin-headed looked guilty. "Sorry."

"Y-you went too far that time." The rock Digimon pouted.

"Okay, I'm sorry." His friend repeated.

"Guys." Wizarmon said as he came towards them.

"Besides, yours are bigger than mine." The rock Digimon muttered.

Wizarmon rolled his eyes. "I'm not eating anybody." He offered a hand to them, helping the two Digimon to their feet. They sighed in relief, smiles on their faces.

"That's mighty decent of you." the pumpkin Digimon said gratefully.

"My name's Gotsumon." The rock Digimon greeted. "This is my brother, Pumpkinmon."

"How's it going, Majin?" Pumpkinmon greeted.

Wizarmon sighed. "Don't call me that."

"Sorry….uh…_Mr. _Majin?" Pumpkinmon tried.

"No, I mean I'm not a Majin." Wizarmon insisted. "I hate Majin."

Gotsumon snickered. "Well gee, you're one big Wormmon!" He and Pumpkinmon laughed, much to Wizarmon's displeasure.

"Do either of your know where the lights touch the earth?" Wizarmon asked.

The two Digimon brothers thought for a moment. "No." They said at once. "Sorry Majin. Or Wormmon."

"I'm not a Wormmon." Wizarmon snapped. "I'm-I'm a Majin. No, I mean I'm not a Majin. I'm a man!"

Gotsumon and Pumpkinmon burst out laughing again. "Excuse me?" Gotsumon chuckled.

"I was transformed _into _a Majin, magically." Wizarmon explained. "I was lifted into the sky by my brother."

The two Digimon before him stared for a moment. "Crazy!" Pumpkinmon faked a cough.

"Gesundheit." Gotsumon said.

"No…" Pumpkinmon faked another cough, badly. "A fruitcake!"

"Are you okay?" Gotsumon asked.

"No!" Pumpkinmon continued with his fake coughing, sounding like he was wheezing. "That Majin, over there! He's crazy!"

"I am _not _crazy!" Wizarmon growled.

Pumpkinmon feigned innocence. "Well, who-who ever said you were? We understand."

"You do?" Wizarmon asked.

"Oh yeah, you see we're not what you think we are." Pumpkinmon teased.

"We aren't?" Gotsumon asked, confused.

"No, we're like, uh…we're like Terriermon, yeah." Pumpkinmon joked.

Gotsumon finally caught on. "Well, _he's _a Terriermon. I'm more of a pure-bred Gabumon. Check out these daggers." He bared his teeth, hardly striking any fear at all into Wizarmon.

Wizarmon face-palmed. "Why am I even talking to a Pumpkinmon and Gotsumon?"

"No, we're Terriermon!" Pumpkinmon teased.

"Gabumon!" Gotsumon chimed in.

Wizarmon pushed the two of them away. "I'll find it myself." He marched off, feeling his nerves reaching the end of their rope.

Gotsumon frowned. "Oh, I wouldn't go that way!"

"Why not?" Pumpkinmon asked.

Gotsumon paused. "Uh…..well….there was a reason…."

"You brought it up. Come on." Pumpkinmon encouraged.

Wizarmon huffed, blowing his new bangs out of his eyes only for them to fall right back. He kept walking, but something suddenly wrapped around his ankle and yanked him into the air. He soon realized he stepped right into a hunter's trap, right before his weight pulled him back down and he hit his head on a rock. The sturdy tree pulled him back up, only for him to go down and hit a tree. This continued for several seconds, with Pumpkinmon and Gotsumon watching passively.

"So, you think of it yet?" Pumpkinmon asked as they walked off.

"Uh, no, but it's driving me nuts." Gotsumon sighed.

Wizarmon rubbed his now-sore head, finding himself hanging upside-down in the trap. "You've got to be kidding me." He grumbled, looking around for something he could use to get himself free. He spied his fallen staff a couple feet away, and he began swinging himself back and forth to reach it. Finally, he managed to catch a nearby rock and reached down to grab the staff. He smirked triumphantly.

"Psst. Hey!"

Wizardmon looked up to see a figure hiding in a small cave just a foot away. He couldn't make out the figure itself, but he could see a pair of shining blue eyes. "Is the coast clear?" the figure asked.

"What?" Wizarmon asked.

"Are there any hunters around?" the figure asked urgently.

"Uh…..no…" Wizarmon replied uncertainly.

"Aw, good!" the figure suddenly leaped out, startling Wizarmon so much he dropped his staff and slammed into the tree again. Looking back to the newcomer he discovered a white cat with sapphire eyes, purple stripes on her tail, purple tufts of hair on her tail and ears, yellow and orange gloves over her paws, and a golden ring on her tail.

"How you doing?" the cat asked pleasantly. "Guess you didn't see the trap, huh? I saw it from a mile away. You must be pretty embarrassed. Don't worry." She looked around before whispering to Wizarmon. "I won't tell anyone."

Wizarmon couldn't quite process what just happened, so he said the first thing that came to mind. "What?"

"You need to get down. Let me help!" the cat picked up his staff and suddenly swung it towards him, hitting Wizarmon like a piñata. No matter how much he protested or tried to stop her, the cat kept hitting him for several seconds. She sighed. "It's no use. The only way to get down is to chew your own foot off! I can help!"

"I don't need some stupid Beast Digimon's help." Wizarmon snapped.

"I'll have you know I'm an _Exalted _Beast Digimon." The cat huffed.

"Still a Beast." Wizarmon shrugged. "I just need my staff."

"Okay, here." The cat offered the staff she held.

"No, no, no! I'll do it myself." Wizarmon snapped. "Put it back." The cat started to set the stick down. "No, where you found it! T-to the left! By the little rock!"

The cat finally set the staff down. "Here?"

"Yes!" Wizarmon began swinging himself again, trying to get the staff.

"If I may offer some advice, why not just break the tree or the rope with a Thunder Ball?" the cat suggested.

Wizarmon stared at her with an exasperated look. "See, _that's _why I don't need some stupid Beast's help. Because they give me suggestions that I don't even understand!"

"You don't know what a Thunder Ball is?" The cat raised an eye ridge.

"No, why would I?" Wizarmon demanded, still try to reach the staff.

The cat laughed. "No wonder you got caught in a trap. I'll bet this isn't your first time, huh?" She watched, amused, as Wizarmon kept struggling to get his staff. "Huh. That tree sure is strong. I should know. I've climbed lots of trees in my time. Which isn't much time anyway, but it still counts for something. I've climbed pretty much every kind of tree you can find in the forest. Everything from pine trees to poplar trees to willow trees to oak trees to maple trees…"


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: I hope Tailmon isn't too out of character, but I wanted this to be a Wizarmon/Tailmon relationship story.**

* * *

**Chapter Five**

Several hours later, Wizarmon finally managed to claw at the grass and pull himself towards the staff. But the rope around his ankle still kept him inches away from the weapon. Meanwhile, the cat had continued to talk almost nonstop.

"…..and after hours of bathing and brushing, my fur was good as new." The cat finished her story. She watched Wizarmon strain to reach the staff for a moment before rolling her eyes and pushing it towards him.

Wizarmon grabbed the staff, laughing triumphantly. "See? It's all about using your head!" He curled up and hooked the sun ornament onto the tree, pulling himself up to where the rope tied around the branch. With one hand still on his staff, he used his free hand to try and untie the rope. But the branch suddenly broke and he fell back down towards the ground, hitting his head and once again dropping the staff.

The cat laughed. "That was funny! Do it again!"

Wizarmon groaned. "Don't you have someplace to go?"

"Yeah, the Nomigid Festival." The cat nodded. She stared up at the trap, humming in thought. "How about this? I get you down, then _we _go together. Deal?"

Wizarmon rolled his eyes. "Yeah, okay, fine. If you can magically get me down, I'll go with you to this…..this….."

"Nomigid Festival." The cat said.

"Whatever." Wizarmon sighed, swinging himself to lock eyes with the cat. "But if you can't, you turn around, walk away, and never come back…ever."

"You swear?" the cat narrowed her eyes suspiciously.

"Yeah." Wizarmon shrugged.

"Cross your heart?" the cat drew an imaginary X over her chest.

Wizarmon rolled his eyes and mimicked her. "Yeah, sure, fine. Cross my heart. But this is a human trap, and you're just a dumb little cat. So there's really no way you're gonna be able to—" The cat moved to the line holding the trap and casually kicked the peg free. Wizarmon gasped as the tree suddenly snapped up and pulled him into the air. He crashed to the ground, the tree branch he was tied to snapping off and landing right on his stomach. He wheezed and gasped, holding his stomach from the pain.

The cat suddenly jumped on him. "Okay, so what I'm thinking is we travel by day and sleep by night. My bedtime is an hour after sunset. But I think….." The cat suddenly sniffed the air, her face going from happy to horrify. She gasped. "Run!" She took off, disappearing down the path.

"Yeah good riddance!" Wizarmon called after her. But suddenly he felt something. Like the feeling of shock gotten from static electricity. Something screamed in the back of his head: you're not alone. Wizarmon rose to his feet, lifting up his staff. Somehow, he felt more at ease with a weapon in his hands. He looked all around, wondering where the source of this new presence could be.

Takeru jumped and hid behind a cluster of trees, panting a little. Fear gripped at his heart, being so close to a Majin Digimon, who were generally seen as more dangerous than most other Digimon types. But one look at his brother's totem gave him strength, and he stepped out from his hiding spot.

Wizarmon spun around, staring at the shadow approaching him. But when the evening light revealed his brother's face, relief washed over him. "Takeru? Takeru, you found me!" He advanced towards the blonde, trying to speak to him. But he forgot that he was a Digimon now, and could no longer be understood by humans. Where Wizarmon heard words, Takeru only heard the soft boom of thunder; Majin Digimon always sounded like whatever element they controlled. "You wouldn't believe what a nightmare this has been!" Suddenly, Wizarmon noticed the murderous look in his brother's eyes, and the fact that he pointed a spear towards him. "Takeru? It-it's me, Ken!" He jumped backwards as Takeru stabbed the spear down, missing Wizarmon by inches. Wizarmon scrambled backwards, only for the branch he was tied to catch onto a tree root. He kept pulling desperately as Takeru gave a shout of effort, ready to drive the spear into him. Wizarmon held up a hand, and suddenly a ball of stormy energy appeared and shot towards Takeru. The blonde yelped and jumped backwards, tripping and hitting the ground. Wizarmon, though surprised, wasted no time in tearing the old rope and taking off running, Takeru in pursuit. Wizarmon kept running, not stopping until he suddenly ran off a small cliff and landed in a creek. He panted a little as he looked around, desperate for a place to hide. He spotted a small cave up ahead and didn't waste a second in running towards it, ducking inside and pressing himself against the rock wall. He panted heavily, looking back to the mouth of the cave to make sure Takeru didn't follow him. At first, he believed himself safe. But he gasped when he looked up and discovered a crack in the ceiling and a shadow passed over. Wizarmon moved away from the light, concealing himself in the shadows and watching his brother.

"Is he gone?"

Wizarmon gasped and looked to see the white cat beside him. "I think he was going—"

"Shh!" Wizarmon hissed, grabbing the cat and putting a hand over her mouth. He stared at his brother's shadow with baited breath, not relaxing until he heard Takeru leave.

"Hello! I can't breathe!" the cat snapped. Wizarmon released her, but he remained too focused on what just happened. He was attacked. By his own _brother. _Then again, he wasn't a boy anymore. To Takeru, he wasn't even Ken; he was just a Digimon. In all his life, Wizarmon never saw such anger and hatred in Takeru's eyes.

"Why is he chasing me?" Wizarmon breathed.

"That's what they do." the cat huffed.

"But it's not like him." Wizarmon insisted.

The cat seemed confused but just shrugged and smiled. "Yeah, well, lucky for him, he didn't find us. 'Cause when I get into a fight, I go all crazy and I'm a raging ball of wild fur!" She laughed confidently. "Or, you know, you could've used a Thunder Ball on him."

Wizarmon stared at his hand for a moment before thinking back to when Takeru attacked him. Suddenly, another ball of storm energy appeared in his palm. "You mean this? Is _this _a Thunder Ball?"

"How does a Digimon not know his own attacks?" the cat laughed. "You should see me. I mean, I don't want to brag, but I got some moves myself."

Wizarmon extinguished the Thunder Ball in his hand. "Oh really?"

"Yep." The cat nodded. "Check it out! _Lighting Claw!" _She leaped up and swiped her claws, leaving noticeable scratch marks in the cave walls. Wizarmon had to admit, that _was _pretty impressive. "See? Nothing can stop me because I've got Neko Power!"

Wizarmon smirked. "Uh-huh." His eyes widened. "Gasp! He's coming back!"

"Where?!" the cat ducked behind him.

Wizarmon scoffed. "Typical."

The cat smiled sheepishly. "Yeah, well, the next time we run into that hunter—"

"There is no 'we'." Wizarmon interrupted. "Okay? I'm not taking you to any Nomad Fest."

"What?!" The cat looked shocked, even scared. "First, it's called the Nomigid Festival. And you crossed your heart!"

"Yeah, well things change." Wizarmon snapped, standing and walking towards the exit. "See ya, cat."

The cat's mind raced, thinking of what she could say to make this stranger stay with her. "Wait! Uh….." Wizarmon paused, turning to her. The cat's ears drooped. "The truth is…I got separated from my mom. And now, with this hunter around…"

Wizarmon sighed, feeling some pity but mostly frustration. "Cat, I got my _own_ problems."

"Come on, please?" the cat pleaded. "Can't we just go together? There's lots of Digimon and tons of food, and every night we watch the lights touch the mountain. And last year—"

Wizarmon froze. "Wait, wait, what'd you just say?"

"There's lots of Digimon and tons of food." The cat repeated.

"No." Wizarmon shook his head. "You know where the lights touch the earth?"

_Gotcha! _The cat smiled. "Yeah. It's at the top of the mountain right by the festival grounds."

"You're kidding me." Wizarmon raised an eyebrow.

"No, no! They're practically next door!" the cat insisted. "Come on, I'll show you. It'll be great!"

Wizarmon sighed, weighing his options. Just spending a few minutes with the cat gave him a headache; he didn't know if he'd last spending days with her. Still, if she told the truth, that would be better than wandering around the wilderness by himself. And with Takeru out for his blood….

"I promise to help you escape from every trap you walk into." The cat added.

"I'm _not _gonna walk into any more—" He failed to notice he still had rope on his ankle, which caught onto a rock and caused him to trip and hit the ground. "….traps."

"Come one." The cat urged, biting the rope free of Wizarmon's ankle. "What do you say?"

"You're sure you can take me to where the lights touch the earth?" Wizarmon asked.

"Yeah, no problem." The cat assured.

Wizarmon rubbed his face and ran his gloved fingers through his hair, groaning. "If you slow me down—"

"I won't!" the cat said hurriedly. "I promise."

Wizarmon sighed. "All right. We leave first thing tomorrow." He laid down on the floor and tried to get comfortable, not exactly excited for his first sleep as a Digimon. The cat sighed in relief, thankful she wouldn't be alone until she could find her mother. She shyly crept over to Wizarmon and curled up next to him, only for the Majin to scoot away from her. "And keep all that cuddly Beast stuff to a minimum, okay Cat?"

"My name's not 'Cat.' It's Tailmon." The cat huffed. Wizarmon rolled his eyes and laid back down. "What's your name?"

Wizarmon groaned in response.

"Oh right." Tailmon almost hit herself. "I know what you are; you're Wizarmon, right?"

Wizarmon blinked, staring at his reflection in the sun ornament on his staff. When he expected raven hair, pale skin, and dark lavender eyes, he only saw gray skin, straw-colored hair, and dark jade green eyes. He wasn't Ken anymore. Unless he found Yamato, he never would be again. "Yeah. Yeah, that's my name. Wizarmon."

Tailmon nodded in thought before curling up to sleep. "I like your name."

* * *

As the morning sun made its way above the horizon, the Digimon of the forest began waking up and going about their business. For Gotsumon and Pumpkinmon, this included doing morning stretches and finding their breakfast.

"If you keep stretching, you'll miss breakfast altogether!" Pumpkinmon warned as he munched on the berries from the bushes around them.

"I got a crick in my back!" Gotsumon complained, stretching. "It's like I slept on rocks last night."

"You're _made _of rocks!"

"Oh yeah."

Unseen by them, Takeru returned to the cave. He could've sworn he heard or saw something that would lead him to the Majin. Spotting a cave, he ducked inside and began looking around, keeping his spear ready. He rounded a corner, only to meet emptiness. He did, however, find claw marks on the walls, perhaps from that Tailmon he saw with the Majin. Takeru continued forward.

Wizarmon and Tailmon already left the cave, continuing down the path based on Tailmon's directions. Now if only the feline Digimon would stop pouncing after every flower she saw. "Hey, I've got a mountain to get to." Wizarmon called. "Come on, Cat."

"I told you before, my name's Tailmon." Tailmon huffed. "Say it with me: Tail…..mon."

"Sure your mom didn't ditch you, Tail….mon?" Wizarmon teased, walking off with Tailmon trailing behind him.

Meanwhile, Takeru searched the entire cave but found nothing inside. Walking back outside, he looked to a nearby ridge and discovered a Pumpkinmon and Gotsumon eating from the berry bushes.

Pumpkinmon spotted the human first, and he gulped down the last of the berries in his mouth. "G-Gotsumon?"

"Go away." Gotsumon waved him off. "I'm eatin'."

"G-Gotsumon?"

"Go away. You're breaking my concentration."

"W-we should start running. Like now!" Pumpkinmon took off down the path.

"I can't. I'm still digesting." Gotsumon told his friend. "I'll get cramps." He looked towards his food again when he noticed Takeru. The blonde raised an eyebrow. Gotsumon spit out his food. "Whoa he's after us!"

"Come on, brother!" Pumpkinmon called.

Gotsumon took off after his companion, yelping in pain. _"CRAMP!"_


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter Six**

Wizarmon and Tailmon, led mostly by the latter's directions, walked for a few hours through the wilderness. Wizarmon remained focused on just getting to the festival Tailmon described, but he couldn't stop the feline Digimon from pouncing on things (like himself/his hat) or telling random stories at random times. Wizarmon tried to ignore her, but the stories helped keep his mind off Takeru's insane quest to kill him. He still couldn't get the look of his brother's eyes out of his head. Currently, the two Digimon walked through a flowery field despite Wizarmon's warnings of keeping an eye out for Takeru.

"Actually, if you really want to know how me and my mom got separated—" Tailmon said as she trotted beside the Majin. The feline had a habit of randomly switching back and forth from walking on her hind legs to all fours. "I was saving this story for the Nomigid Festival, but I'll tell you." If she saw Wizarmon roll his eyes, she didn't show it. "It was probably the fifth or sixth most coldest day in my entire life."

"Oh, this sounds good. You should definitely save it." Wizarmon feigned excitement.

"You think so?" Tailmon asked, her eyes shining and ears perked up.

"Oh yeah. For your friends." Wizarmon huffed, continuing to walk.

Tailmon bounded after him. "Well, I have this other story—"

"Uh, tell you what." Wizarmon interrupted. "How about no talking?"

Tailmon raised an eye ridge, but smirked. She rather liked teasing this Wizarmon character. It wasn't as amusing as teasing her mother, who would play along with it, but it was still fun. Tailmon stayed on all fours, bounding ahead of him. "Okay! Then I'll sing!"

"No, no, no, no, no." Wizarmon snapped. "Don't even think about it."

"Too late!" Tailmon laughed, her tail and ears erect and her head held high. _"Tell everybody I'm on my way/ New friends and new places to see!"_

"Tailmon, stop singing!" Wizarmon ordered, trying to cover her mouth. But the cat Digimon stayed just out of reach.

"_With blue skies ahead, yes I'm on my way!" _She ducked into the grass as Wizarmon lunged for her. The Majin looked around curiously, only to jump in surprise when Tailmon appeared from a log, singing right into his ear. _"And there's nowhere else that I'd rather be!" _Giggling, the feline bounded ahead, leaving Wizarmon to grumble to himself and rub his ear.

Luckily, Tailmon stopped singing after a while. But she soon found amusement in other ways. As she walked beside Wizarmon, she noticed the frown on his face (or at least what she thought was frown, since she could only see his eyes) and his gaze locked straight ahead. Smirking, she rose to her hind legs and mirrored his glare. Wizarmon rolled his eyes and shook his head; Tailmon mimicked him. Wizarmon tried running ahead, only for Tailmon to stay close beside him. They continued traveling, for quite a few days. If asked, Wizarmon would've said it was because Tailmon kept stopping for various things. She ran into some Digimon (whom she claimed as "old friends") and stopped to tell them a story, ending with Wizarmon picking her up by the scruff and practically dragging her away. Tailmon broke away to tear through some dandelions, sending the fluffy stuff into the air and all over her traveling companion, who couldn't stop sneezing for another hour after they left. They got caught in a vicious rainstorm, greatly annoying Wizarmon but delighting Tailmon as she splashed in the puddles.

During their travels, Tailmon began to notice that Wizarmon didn't act like other Majin she met; or just other Digimon overall. He didn't understand or know his attacks, didn't know or apparently can't fly like he's supposed to, and used his wand as a walking stick more than a weapon. Tailmon wasn't sure what to make of Wizarmon; it was almost like he didn't know he was a Digimon. But something about him made her want to stay with him, so she stuck by the Majin's side.

Wizarmon, in turn, wasn't sure how long he could handle being with Tailmon. If her antics were supposed to help them bond, she did a poor job of it. If anything, he was more annoyed by her than amused. Still, there was something about her that he liked. Maybe it was the way her eyes would sparkle when she was truly happy, or the way she seemed to have an immense curiosity in everything around her, or even just in the way she laughed at every little thing. Steadily, he decided he didn't fully oppose to her sleeping so close to him; her purr often lulled him to sleep.

"Come check this out!" Tailmon called, running to a nearby cliff. Wizarmon followed, curious, and blinked in surprise to discover a heavy updraft that blew wind right up from the bottom of the cliff, like a giant fan. Watching Tailmon spread her arms and lean against the wind, Wizarmon used one hand to keep his hat in place and mimicked her. It was rather fun, until the wind suddenly stopped and the two of them tumbled down the hill and into a giant mud puddle. The gooey dirt and water mix became caked over Wizarmon's face, much to Tailmon's amusement. But he responded to her laughter by smearing some of the mud onto her head. They both laughed, exiting the mud puddle and jumping into a nearby river to wash off. Then they continued on, but Wizarmon felt a new lightness to his heart. Something he hadn't felt since his younger days with his brothers.

"Hey! Hold on!"

"Wait—wait up!"

Wizarmon and Tailmon paused as Gotsumon and Pumpkinmon suddenly ran up, hiding behind the Majin and staring fearfully in the direction they came.

"How's it going, Mr. Majin?" Gotsumon panted.

"And, uh, smallish cat." Pumpkinmon added, looking to Tailmon.

"Gee, I didn't know you had a little sister. She's cute!" Gotsumon laughed.

"Well, actually she's just a—" Wizarmon started.

"Okay, there's this hunter following us and I was—we was thinking." Gotsumon said hurriedly. "If we could maybe just kind of hang out with you guys—"

"Yeah, just hang out." Pumpkinmon nodded hurriedly. "That's right."

"Yeah. It'd be fun, you know?" Gotsumon continued. "And then if the hunter, who's going to catch up—"

"Then _you _torch him or something." Pumpkinmon finished, looking to Wizarmon.

"Right." Gotsumon nodded. "Well, that's what we was thinking."

"We lost the hunter back in the cave." Wizarmon said.

"So you don't think he'll follow those?" Gotsumon pointed behind them, and Tailmon and Wizarmon realized their left very visible tracks behind them.

"They are quite nice." Pumpkinmon mused.

Wizarmon thought for a moment. _There has to be a way to throw him off the trail. Some way to cover our tracks or something._

"What do we do?" Tailmon asked. "I don't suppose you remember how to fly?"

Wizarmon's eyes lit up. "No. But I've got an idea!"

* * *

"Okay, _this _is really weird!" Tailmon yelped, but soon smiled. The Mammothmon she rode let out a trumpet, lumbering along with its herd. Wizarmon rode another Mammothmon alongside Tailmon, and Pumpkinmon and Gotsumon rode one behind them.

"Get out, I'm driving!" Pumpkinmon declared, taking the Mammothmon's fur in his hands.

"When can I have a turn?" Gotsumon asked, lying on his stomach behind Pumpkinmon.

"It's not as easy as it looks." Pumpkinmon warned. "Now just watch what I do, okay?"

"Well, let's get a backseat or something." Gotsumon complained. "I look like you hunted me!" Pumpkinmon rolled his eyes and hauled his brother up to a sitting position.

Needless to say, the sight of these Digimon riding the Mammothmon caught plenty of attention. Tailmon called the other Digimon up, and many of the Digimon that watched them suddenly boarded their own Mammothmon. The elephant Digimon continued to lumber on, actually enjoying the passengers. Tailmon laughed, though became a bit fearful when the Mammothmon waded into a river to cross it. But Wizarmon looked back and laughed, giving Tailmon encouragement. The cat giggled and climbed up as the Mammothmon raised his trunk, keeping her clear of the water. Wizarmon unsteadily stood up from his spot on the Mammothmon's back, smiling warmly.

_You are something else, Wizarmon. _Tailmon decided.

* * *

Tailmon confirmed that the Mammothmon went in the direction of the Nomigid Festival, so they decided to keep riding. The other Digimon waved goodbye as they left, although Pumpkinmon and Gotsumon remained with them. Wizarmon and Tailmon joined at the same Mammothmon, the elephant Digimon kindly curling her trunk up near her tusks so they could have a better place to sit and sleep. Hours passed, and soon the sun set and the stars came out to grace the sky. For the past hour, Tailmon had decided to use the time to tell more stories to everyone. The Mammothmon, patient as ever, only rolled their eyes and kept going.

"Last year, at the Nomigid Festival, my friend Patamon totally dared me," Tailmon said, bouncing all around Wizarmon and swinging from the Mammothmon's tusks. She remained hyper as ever, clearly not ready for sleep anytime soon. "But I'd heard about this other Digimon who stuck _his _tongue to an icicle and they couldn't get him off no matter what they did! And so, to save him, they had to rip off his tongue. So now, he talks all slurred like and—"

Wizarmon covered the cat's mouth with his hand. "Do you always tell so many stories in such a short amount of time?"

"Well my mom's already heard all these stories." Tailmon shrugged, her voice a bit muffled.

Wizarmon chuckled and lowered his hand. "You are something else, Tailmon."

"So are you. I've never met someone like you before." Tailmon said with a warm smile. Wizarmon mirrored the look. Tailmon looked up and gasped. "Whoa, look!" She bounced over to one of the Mammothmon's tusks, pointing to the sky. Wizarmon looked up to see the Sovereign Lights dancing above them. Tailmon's eyes shined in wonder. "The night rainbow! You can see the Sovereigns and the spirits from here!"

Wizarmon blinked in surprise. "_You _know about the Sovereign Digimon and the spirits?"

"Well sure. Who doesn't?" Tailmon shrugged. "My grandma's up there, and my granddad." She sat down on the Mammothmon tusk, still smiling and swinging her legs back and forth. "Mom says the spirits make all the magical changes of the world. Like how the leaves change color, or the moon changes shapes, or how we Digivolve as we grow up—"

"Yeah I—I get it." Wizarmon half-snapped, a frown on his lips. "You know, for a change, maybe they could just leave things alone." He glanced up to the Sovereign Lights for a moment before laying down, turning his face from Tailmon.

The feline Digimon looked confused. "What do you mean?"

Wizarmon felt a twinge in his heart, the memory of Yamato's death flooding back to him. "My brother's a spirit. If it wasn't for him, I…..I wouldn't be here." He didn't know how much he wanted to tell Tailmon, especially since he never told her he used to be a human. She probably wouldn't believe him anyway.

"You have a brother up there?" Tailmon looked to the lights. "What happened to him?"

"He was killed by a Be—" Wizarmon paused, wondering what Tailmon would think if he told her a Beast Digimon caused his brother's death. He sighed, trying to make the Mammothmon tusk comfortable enough to be used as a pillow. "By a monster…"

Tailmon stared at Wizarmon, pity washing over her. She could guess how he felt; she worried for her mother right now. At the moment, the feline Digimon could only assume that the "monster" was one of those strange human creatures. Tailmon leaped up to stand on Wizarmon's back and shoulders. "What's your brother's name?"

"Yamato." Wizarmon replied.

Tailmon looked confused, but shrugged. She smiled up to the Sovereign Lights. "Thanks, Yamato-mon. If it weren't for you, I would've never met Wizarmon."

Wizarmon blinked, glancing up to the lights. _I wonder…..is Tailmon somehow connected to why you changed me, Yamato?_

Tailmon jumped down to the Mammothmon's curled-up trunk, snuggling close to Wizarmon. "I always wanted a sibling." She sighed, surrendering to her sleepiness.

Wizarmon glanced up at the sky one last time, contemplating Tailmon's words, but soon followed her example.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter Seven**

Wizarmon didn't expect a wake-up call the next morning, so it came as a surprise when Tailmon somehow fell and landed right on his head. He sat up and yawned, the white cat tumbling into his lap. He stretched and yawned again, rubbing his eyes. "Tailmon. Come on, time to get up. Tailmon, wake up."

"Two more hours, Mom." Tailmon murmured, but rolled up and yawned, rubbing her eyes. "Okay, okay I'm up."

Wizarmon let out another yawn before looking around. "So, where are we?"

Tailmon rubbed her eyes a bit more before taking a look. Instantly, she was wide awake. She didn't recognize these landmarks; none of the trees nor mountains nor even the grass looked familiar to her. She and her mother traveled around for so long and so far, but they never came here before.

Wizarmon noticed the look on her face. "Well? Which way?"

Tailmon felt a small sense of panic. "Um…..I think it's that way."

"You think or you know?" Wizarmon asked suspiciously.

"Uh, that way?" Tailmon offered weakly.

Wizarmon groaned. "Why wasn't I turned into a homing Hawkmon?" he muttered, jumping off the Mammothmon and walking off. "Well come on!"

Tailmon frowned. "Hey, riding Mammothmon was _your _idea!" Tailmon snapped. "Thanks for the ride, guys! See ya!" She leaped off and ran after Wizarmon.

Pumpkinmon and Gotsumon snored heavily as they slept on the still-walking Mammothmon. They remained unaware that their "Guardian Majin" left without them.

Gotsumon snorted in his sleep. "P-Pumpkinmon. Remember we have to stay with our big guardian Digimon, okay?"

"Right, right." Pumpkinmon muttered in his sleep. "Whatever you say."

"Lucky for you, I've been lost worse than this before." Tailmon assured as she and Wizarmon kept walking.

"Sure, sure." Wizarmon muttered, his frustration rekindling.

"Last summer," Tailmon started. "I was digging for roots with Pata—"

"No stories! Not now!" Wizarmon snapped. "I don't care about the time you and Puggamon found the world's biggest pine cone ever!" He stomped off, grumbling to himself.

"First of all, his name's Patamon, not Puggamon!" Tailmon snapped. "Second, it wasn't a pine cone. It was a pine nut. And it was huge! Even bigger than your fat head!"

"I'd rather have a big head than a big mouth like yours!" Wizarmon snapped.

"If you have a big head, you have a big mouth!" Tailmon sassed. "That's a given!" Wizarmon growled to himself, still stomping angrily as they kept walking. Tailmon sighed and quickened her pace to keep up with him. They remained silent for several tense moments. "I'm sorry we're lost, okay?" Tailmon offered. She lowered her tone to a mutter. "Even though it's pretty much your fault."

Wizarmon's eye twitched. "_My _fault?! Ugh, that's it!" He quickened his paced, wanting to get away from the cat Digimon.

"Just remember," Tailmon reminded him, matching his speed. "If it weren't for me, you'd _still_ be hanging upside-down right now."

Wizarmon whirled around to look at her, advancing a few steps and making her back up. "Better than being stuck in the middle of nowhere with a cat who has no attention span and doesn't know when it's time to stop talking! 'I'm lost. I can't find my mommy. Would you take me to the Nomigid Festival?' Why don't you just grow up?"

Tailmon kept the fierce glare in her eyes. "Fine! I'll just go on my own, then."

"Fine! Go ahead! I never wanted you around anyway!" Wizarmon snapped.

"Fine!" Tailmon growled.

"Fine!" Wizarmon shouted.

Tailmon's eyes narrowed. "Fine." She turned and stomped off, blinking back her tears and keeping her back to Wizarmon.

The Majin watched her go for a moment until she disappeared behind the rocks. But once she left, he felt a pang of guilt. What was he thinking? Leaving a little kid like her walking around. In all technicality, he was the oldest and he took it upon himself to watch out for her, even if he was forced to. _I can't leave her alone. _He decided, moving forward to follow the cat. "Tailmon!"

Tailmon didn't pause until she rounded a corner and a new scent caught her nose. Curious, she kept going and gasped at the sight before her. Wizarmon came around the corner and had a similar reaction, slowly following Tailmon as they passed what looked like an old human cave, paintings drawn all over the rock walls.

"Whoa." Tailmon breathed, staring in awe at all the paintings of the different Digimon native to the area. Wizarmon followed her, staring at the old paintings. He paused at the sight of some black marks, and discovered handprints surrounded by what he assumed was coal dust. Staring at the handprints, he pulled off one of his gloves and stared at his own hand. He never had the chance to really look at his hand, and he realized the lines and fingerprints in his skin didn't look like the ones in human hands. In fact, the lines were mostly jagged, like lightning bolts. Wizarmon pressed his hand against one of the hands already on the wall, his heart heavy. The handprints only reminded him of his greatest dream: to be a man, to get his handprint on the wall back in the village. Sighing sadly, Wizarmon pulled back his hand and put his glove back on, staring at the print he left on the wall. His gaze continued up the trail of pictures, leading further into the cave. Whoever used to live here, they did an excellent job with the drawings. Several circles made up of the Digimon drawings graced the ceiling of the cave. In his mind, Wizarmon could remember all the stories Renamon would tell about the Digimon Sovereign and the spirits and all the legends of their world. As a child, Wizarmon wondered if he could ever be like that. Could he be so great that he would leave a legend behind when he passed?

A painting, almost separate from the others, stood out to Wizarmon, and not just because the late afternoon sun shined on it. Gasping softly, he approached the painting and took in its appearance: a stick figure human, armed with a spear, battling a Holydramon. He stared at the Holydramon picture, his battle with the Beast Digimon still fresh in his mind. At that moment, Wizarmon wondered if him and Tailmon coming to this cave was pure luck or some sort of fate.

Tailmon came up behind Wizarmon, but her eyes widened at the sight of the picture he stared at. She bounded up behind him and cowered a bit behind his legs. She peered out slowly, staring at the human drawing. "Those monsters are _really_ scary. Especially with those sticks."

Wizarmon's eyes widened a bit, realizing Tailmon referred to the human. Now that he thought about it, Takeru sure looked terrifying when he was trying to kill them. But is that what all Digimon felt when Ken and his brother's went hunting? In the village, they were taught to respect the lives of Digimon. Any Digimon they killed for food and supplies was honored and killed painlessly. Hunters prayed for their kill in order to appease the Sovereigns and assure them that the death was necessary for survival. Still, the Digimon probably didn't find it honorable nor necessary.

"Come on." Wizarmon urged in a soft voice. "Let's go." He began walking off, Tailmon close behind.

The two of them remained silent for a while. Then, Tailmon spoke up. "Sorry I got us lost."

Wizarmon looked to her and then shrugged. "No problem. You're right; without you, I wouldn't have made it so far. Sorry I lost my temper."

Tailmon smiled. "It's okay. I still think you're pretty cool. Even if you are a little weird." She bounded ahead, laughing.

"Oh, _I'm _weird?" Wizarmon laughed, running after her. "You're the one who hangs out with a Digimon that looks like a hamster with wings!" They laughed again, continuing to walk in hopes Tailmon recognized anything. After a while, the cat complained a little about her feet hurting. Wizarmon, chuckling that she could be taken out by sore feet, decided to let her ride on his shoulders.

"So, you recognize anything yet?" Wizarmon asked, chuckling as Tailmon insisted on pulling on his hat and wearing it herself. The headwear kept slipping down over her eyes. "Or maybe you can't see past my fat head." Tailmon giggled, feeling a little guilty at the name calling from before. Wizarmon chuckled. "So, do you really think I have a fat head?"

"Well, if you hunched your shoulders a little, it wouldn't seem so big." Tailmon teased.

Wizarmon smirked. "Oh, you mean like this?" He jerked one of his shoulders, almost knocking Tailmon off. She giggled uncontrollably. "Or like this?" He jerked the other shoulder. "How about this?" He shrugged his shoulders quickly, almost sending Tailmon to the ground. The two of them laughed, only interrupted by the sound of two things hitting each other. Looking up, they saw two Veemon on the ridge ahead of them.

"Hey, maybe they can give us directions." Tailmon suggested.

The two Veemon lunged for each other, crying out _"V Head Butt!" _before colliding their skulls together.

"Oh, that clears up the sinuses!" the first Veemon laughed.

"Oh it does." His companion agreed.

"Hit me again!" Veemon 1 urged. "I think she's looking! Hello, sweetie!" The two of them turned their attention to a pink-colored, female Veemon standing off to one side with the rest of the pack. She looked up to them curiously, only to roll her eyes and continue on her way.

"Oh yeah, she's checking me out, all right." Veemon 2 chuckled. "Hey baby!"

"What?" Veemon 1 blinked. "No, no, no. Come on, you nitwit. Are you out of your head? She's looking at me. Look at that!"

"Right. Like she's looking at your ugly mug?" Veemon 2 scoffed.

Veemon 1 looked plenty insulted. "My—excuse me, miss, one second—it's go time, baby!"

"Oh, you want to go?" Veemon 2 goaded, the two of them butting heads again.

"Uh, hey!" Wizarmon called as he approached, catching the two Veemon's attention. "Excuse me?"

"What do you want?!" Veemon 2 shouted. He and his companion jumped at the sound of an echo. "What is that? Who is that?"

"Just a minute, Majin." Veemon 1 said before turning out towards the direction of the second voice. "Hey! Shut up!"

The echo called back, "Hey, shut up!"

"No, you shut up!"

"No, you shut up!"

"No you shut up!"

"No you shut up!"

"Hey, will you shut up?"

"Hey, will you shut up?"

"JUST SHUT UP!"

"JUST SHUT UP!"

Tailmon chuckled. "I think their skulls are screwed on a little too tight." Wizarmon chuckled, agreeing that those two Veemon certainly weren't the sharpest spears in the armory. Tailmon suddenly sniffed the air. "Hey, wait a second." She put Wizarmon's hat back on his head and leaped off his shoulders, bounding forward. "I know this place!"

"You do?" Wizarmon asked hopefully, following the cat.

"Yeah, the Nomigid Festival's not far." Tailmon nodded, bounding up the path with Wizarmon close behind. "We just have to go through here." Wizarmon came to stand beside her, and his jaw dropped at the sight of "here": an old lava field. Bursts of hot geyser mist shot from the ground in random places and random times. Wizarmon stared at Tailmon, hoping she was kidding. But the cat looked to him innocently. "What?"

Reluctantly, Wizarmon followed Tailmon into the field, his skin already beginning to perspire from the heat. After several close calls and about half an hour of wandering, Wizarmon felt his nerves begin to break. "Hey, are you sure you know where you're going?"

"Yeah, yeah! Follow me." Tailmon assured, bounding ahead of him.

Wizarmon jumped as the rock cracked beneath his feet and steam hissed out. "Tailmon! Tailmon!" But he soon discovered the feline Digimon disappeared from sight. "Tailmon? Where _are_ you?" He tried to feel her presence, something he had been trying to master so he could do it on a whim, but he felt nothing until the last second and—

"Boo!"

"AAH!"

Wizarmon fell back, staring at Tailmon as she literally rolled on the ground laughing. "Don't do that!"

"Scared you, didn't I?" Tailmon giggled.

"There's scared, and then there's surprised." Wizarmon corrected.

"And you were both." Tailmon giggled again, but paused as something caught her eye. "Whoa." She breathed, walking up to what looked like a huge skull, carved in the rock. Wizarmon noticed she had her full attention on the rock, and he got a crafty smile on his face. Carefully, he snuck up to be right behind Tailmon, and let out his fiercest and loudest roar. Tailmon turned with an amused smile. "Nice try. But nothing can scare me."

Wizarmon gave a deadpanned look. "Tch, whatever."

Tailmon gasped. "Wizarmon!"

"You're not getting me this time." Wizarmon laughed.

"No, Wizarmon, look out!" Tailmon warned, just as a spear whistled through the air and hit the ground inches from Wizarmon's feet. The two of them jumped, and that's when Wizarmon noticed his totem tied around the spear. Turning, his eyes locked onto Takeru as the boy leaped down towards them, armed with a knife and his murderous glare locked onto his prey.

"No…." Wizarmon breathed.

"Come on!" Tailmon cried, taking off into the mist. Takeru advanced slowly towards Wizarmon, knife raised and ready to strike down the Majin. Wizarmon held his staff ready, wanting nothing more than to somehow show his brother who he was attacking. Suddenly, his foot broke through a weak section of stone and let out the steam underneath. Wizarmon eyed the cracks in the ground, right between him and Takeru. Narrowing his eyes, Wizarmon spun his staff in his hands and waited as Takeru charged for him with an angry shout. Wizarmon, at the last second, slammed his staff down and broke the rock, sending a burst of steam up that caused Takeru to fall back and give the Majin his chance to run. He charged through the lava field, panting a little, but not stopping until he reached a fallen tree that connected the field to the forest across a canyon.

"Wizarmon!" Tailmon's voice called in the air. Wizarmon paused, looking around and weighing the odds that Tailmon already reached the other side of the log.

Tailmon hadn't; she was lost in the lava field and looking all around for her friend. "Wizarmon, where are you?" Suddenly, she spied a shadow coming through the steam, and she turned to make a break for it. Then, Wizarmon scooped her up into an arm and took off running, back towards the log and to safety. Though he was hit with steam along the way, he didn't stop running as he held Tailmon close to his chest. Tailmon's claws dug into his vest, her little body shaking a bit. Finally, they reached the log, and Wizarmon jumped up onto it to run across. His foot slipped on a wet patch, and he fell to his stomach. He almost dropped Tailmon, but kept a firm grip on her fur. Slowly standing and bringing her in close once more. Wizarmon began inching his way across the log. He eyed the river, far below them, and he decided it would be better to focus on the other side of the log.

"Wizarmon!" Tailmon gasped, causing the Majin to turn and see Takeru coming up. But rather than come up on the log, Takeru drove his spear underneath it and began prying it up from the ground. Wizarmon yelped as he slipped again, still keeping a tight grip on Tailmon. But once he was on his feet again, he threw Tailmon to solid ground. She stood up quickly, watching in horror as Takeru broke his spear but resolved to pushing the log off the edge. Wizarmon yelped again as he ran up the wood, jumping and managing to catch the roots still stuck into the rock. He hauled himself to the ground, Tailmon right there with him.

"No!" Takeru shouted in frustration, angry the Majin lived. He began pacing back and forth, muttering and growling under his breath. Wizarmon and Tailmon watched, both with worry but for different reasons. Takeru threw a rock towards them, but then collapsed to his hands and knees and bowed his head, going still.

"What are you doing?!" Tailmon urged, tugging on Wizarmon's cape. "We got to get out of here!"

Wizarmon stared at Takeru for a long moment, wanting to shout to him but knowing Takeru would never understand him. So, accepting the situation, he turned and began walking towards the forest, casting one last sad glance to his brother before continuing with Tailmon by his side.

Takeru glared after his targets, picking up the broken spear head. Ken's totem still remained, and the sight of it reminded Takeru why he had chased this Majin for so long. The sight of his brother's torn clothing still burned fresh in his memory, and he could never forget the look in that Majin's eyes. Like it wasn't even aware or just didn't care about the atrocity it committed. Takeru seethed with rage, and suddenly he pushed himself to his feet and ran forward. With a mighty shout, he leaped off the cliff. Wizarmon screamed, but the sound only came out like a crash of thunder. Takeru hit the log, stabbing the spear head into it to catch himself. Wizarmon hurried to the cliff edge, staring down at his brother with wide, horrified eyes. Takeru struggled to pull himself up, keeping a firm grip on the log. But as he looked up to the Majin, he noticed the horrified look in the Digimon's eyes. Why did it look at him like that, as though concerned for his safety? Why did he care what it thought of him? Why did the Majin's eyes suddenly look lavender instead of green?

Suddenly, the roots began to break from the extra weight, and even though Wizarmon desperately tried to keep it up, the log fell free and down into the river. He kept his eyes on the water until he saw Takeru surface again, grabbing the log as it floated downstream and took him with it. Wizarmon stared sadly after him, his heart breaking.

Tailmon came to stand next to Wizarmon, looking down at the hunter. What was it about this hunter that seemed so different about the others she'd seen? Why was it so intent on killing them?

Why did Wizarmon seem to care about him?


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter Eight**

"Why do they hate us, Wizarmon?" Tailmon asked as they continued walking the next day.

"You're a Beast Digimon. I'm a Majin." Wizarmon replied simply.

"So?" Tailmon shrugged.

"So, you….you know how they are." Wizarmon shrugged. "They're…they're killers."

"Wait a minute. Who's the killers?" Tailmon asked, getting more and more confused by the minute.

"Us." Wizarmon replied. "Digimon like us: Beast and Majin."

"What? Which ones?" Tailmon demanded innocently. "I'm not like that, and you're not like that."

Wizarmon sighed, wondering how he could explain a human concept to a Digimon. "Well, uh, obviously not all Beast and Majin. I mean, you're okay, but most of them….most Beast and Majin will look for any excuse to attack a human."

Tailmon blinked. "But Wizarmon, _he _attacked _us._"

Wizarmon paused. He couldn't really defend that without revealing he's actually human. He sighed angrily. "You know what? You're just a kid. When you're older, you'll understand."

"Tally-hoe!"

Wizarmon turned, only to duck suddenly as a huge Aquilamon shot dangerously close to his head. "Hey!"

Tailmon's face brightened. "We made it! We're here! Come on!" She took off running before Wizarmon could protest.

"Tailmon!" Wizarmon called after her, but the sound of flapping wings caught his attention and he turned to see a flock of Hawkmon coming right at him. Suddenly, he was caught in a flurry of feathers and beaks. He ended up walking backwards so far he fell and landed right in a pool of water. He burst up from the shallow depths, leaning on the closest rock to him. But he soon discovered it wasn't a rock, but rather a large ExVeemon who stood up and stared at him with a couple fish in his mouth. Wizarmon yelped and backed off, only to turn and become nose-to-flames with a FlameWizardmon doing fiery tricks. He jumped back, panting heavily, but froze when a shadow passed in front of him. He looked up as a large, dragon-like creature rose from the water and swallowed the fish he had whole.

Not use to being so close to fearsome Beasts and Majin, Wizarmon did the first thing that came to mind: he screamed.

The Digimon around him paused to stare at the newcomer, wondering what on earth could've spooked him so badly. But they patiently waited until he realized the slight awkwardness of the situation and became quiet. He stared at each of them in turn, a confused but still fearful look in his eyes.

"Hey, you're stirring up the water." ExVeemon noted. "We kind of need these fish for the festival."

"Yeah, try not to scare them off, okay?" the red dragon standing before Wizarmon requested.

Wizarmon blinked. He blinked again. "Uh…"

"Guilmon!"

The red dragon turned and smiled as Tailmon came bounding up to him. "Tailmon! Come here!" He and the feline laughed as she jumped onto him, sending them both into the water laughing. "It's good to see you!"

"Hey, Guilmon, have you seen my mom yet?" Tailmon asked, looking around for her mother.

"No, as a matter of fact, I haven't seen her." Guilmon shook his head as they stood up.

Tailmon laughed. "Me and my friend Wizarmon beat her!"

Guilmon looked to Wizarmon, cocking his head to one side curiously. "He's with you?"

Wizarmon chuckled nervously, shrinking under the gazes of the Majin and Beast Digimon that surrounded him. They stared at him curiously, one of the Beasts actually sniffing him. "Uh…..hi?" Wizarmon waved weakly.

"Huh. I've never seen you at the festival before." Guilmon noted, he and Tailmon walking over to Wizarmon. "Where are you from?" He got a little too close to Wizarmon than the Majin would've liked, but if Guilmon was being intimidating he wasn't doing it on purpose. Wizarmon stuttered and stammered, wondering how he would explain himself. More importantly, how he was going to get away from all these Digimon so close to him.

"And see, Wizarmon?" Tailmon jerked her head to a large mountain on the horizon, quite close to them. "There's the mountain, just like I promised. The lights touch the top every single night." Wizarmon followed her gaze, as did the other Digimon who smiled in nostalgia. Tailmon giggled. "It's going to be a lot harder getting up there than it was riding those Mammothmon."

"Mammothmon?" the Digimon repeated. Wizarmon stiffened.

"That's kind of weird." Guilmon said, all of the Digimon looking to Wizarmon. The Majin chuckled nervously.

"Yeah, he does a lot of weird stuff." Tailmon shrugged. "Like how he doesn't even know what his attacks are, or how to use them. He apparently can't fly or never has. He uses his staff like a walking stick more than a weapon. And he keeps trying to cut out the thread over his mouth. And—"

Wizarmon chuckled sheepishly, shrinking under everyone's curious gazes, and suddenly shot forward and covered Tailmon's mouth. "Tailmon! Tailmon! Can I talk to you for a second?" He lifted the cat and scooted away from the other Digimon, still chuckling nervously. "Excuse us."

The Digimon watched them go. Guilmon scratched his head. "He's kind of jumpy, isn't he?"

Wizarmon, once a safe distance away, gently put Tailmon down. "Okay, Tailmon I…..uh…." He looked down to her smiling face, her eyes shining the way he likes, and he suddenly felt a little sad. "….uh….I got to get going."

"Well, when you come back, we can go and—" Tailmon started.

"I…..I won't be coming back." Wizarmon said slowly, remorsefully.

"What?" Tailmon's face fell. "Why not?"

Wizarmon sighed, wondering how on earth he could explain this. "Well…..it's complicated….."

"Come on, stay for the festival!" Tailmon pleaded. "It'll be fun! Everyone's invited and most of them come. Well, everybody comes it's just that some Digimon only stay for the one day because they're passing through or something. But there's still a lot of Digimon here and tons of food and you'll have so much fun and—"

"Tailmon, this is something I have to do." Wizarmon said, kneeling down and rubbing her head affectionately. "Thanks for getting me here, but now I need to go on my—"

"You're leaving?" Guilmon asked, popping up behind Wizarmon and startling him. The Majin jumped backwards, yelping.

"No! I—I mean yes." Wizarmon stuttered a bit. "Uh…..well, it's just that I…I don't belong here."

"Don't belong?" Guilmon asked, him and everyone else smiling now. "_Everyone _belongs here!"

Quite suddenly, Wizarmon found ExVeemon and FlameWizardmon's hands on each of his arms, pulling him up to his feet and ushering/pushing him down the path, the other Digimon following and laughing. Tailmon bounded ahead, leading the way. Wizarmon managed to break free of his "captors" and stayed close to Tailmon, his eyes darting around nervously. But he paused at the sight of a couple Digimon standing at the creek beside them. A Sorcermon moved his hands fluidly over the waters of the creek, causing a portion of the water to rise up into the air. Continuing the magic, the Sorcermon shaped the water into a large bowl and froze it solid. The Digimon beside him, a Witchmon, poured a bucket of purple liquid (either wine or some kind of juice) into the bowl. The two Majin looked up and waved, smiling warmly. The Digimon around Wizarmon laughed at his confused and surprised look, trying to encourage him to go over and talk to his kin, but he only smiled nervously and waved back to the Sorcermon and Witchmon. He kept moving, pausing only when an Agumon and Gabumon tumbled out of a nearby tree, laughing crazily as they ran off. Tailmon, Guilmon, and the other Digimon smiled proudly as Wizarmon walked down the path curiously, following the Agumon and Gabumon as they rounded a corner and disappeared. But what lay before Wizarmon kept his attention the most.

A woodland paradise laid out before him. A tower of waterfalls, looking like steps on a ladder made of the falls, cascaded down into a large pool. The falls came in many sizes and lengths, some forming the resemblance of a waterslide. Trees dotted the rocks all around the area. A large clearing rested off to one side, connected to the shores of the pool. Dozens of Digimon prepared food near a bonfire, set up tables in the clearing for the festival, and played in the water, swimming, jumping off rocks into the pool, and riding down the waterfalls. There was a wide variety of Digimon, but from what Wizarmon could see, most of them looked like Beast and Majin Digimon. The Digimon behind Wizarmon laughed as they bounded forward, joining in the fun. Tailmon, sitting up on a rock at Wizarmon's eye-level, motioned for him to follow them. Wizarmon, a little nervous but mainly curious, walked towards the crowd to get a better look at everything. Tailmon followed close behind, waving to all her friends as they passed.

Wizarmon looked around, staring at everything in turn. Unfortunately, he didn't see the two towers of fish until he crashed into them, tripping and falling into the shallows of the pool. Tailmon caught up, only to see a slightly irritated Leomon who had been stacking the fish. They both looked towards where Wizarmon fell, just as the Majin rose from the depths holding what he thought was a dead fish in his hands, only for the animal to be alive and slap his face as it escaped. The Leomon and Tailmon laughed heartily. Wizarmon followed Tailmon as she gave him a tour, introducing him to her friend Patamon. Wizarmon wasn't sure how he felt about being so close to the Digimon, but steadily he grew more comfortable with it. A Babamon forcibly inspected the thread over his mouth, complimenting him for taking such good care of the thread. Wizarmon stuttered out a "thank you," smiling at the Babamon's grandmotherly nature that reminded him of his own grandmother. A Gomamon tried to teach him how to fish using his staff as a spear, but somehow Wizarmon ended up clonking himself in the head. Then he became doused in water as several of the younger Digimon jumped into the pool and splashed them. Tailmon took him up to get a closer look at the waterfalls, only to pounce on him and send the two of them sliding down the falls. Though terrified at first, Wizarmon soon found himself laughing and whooping in delight. The two of them crashed into the pool, bursting through the surface with gasps and laughs.

From there, Wizarmon found himself enjoying the Nomigid Festival much more. The other Digimon openly welcomed him, and with Tailmon's encouragement he decided to join in. Many of the games he played with the Digimon were very similar to games he played with the other kids in the village; everything from kickball to bone puzzles. He talked to different Majin, finding it hard to hate them now that he was one of them. He even met a Beelzebumon that was once a Wizarmon like him, who explained his different attacks and how to use them. He even taught Wizarmon how to fly, something Wizarmon found oddly fun and terrifying. In fact, quite a few Mega Digimon attended the festival preparations, entertaining the little ones and preparing stories they would tell during the festival itself. Though he had no experience cooking, Tailmon insisted Wizarmon help her and some of the other Digimon cooking dinner. The two of them stayed close together most of the time. While Wizarmon knew he'd have to get to the mountain soon, he had to admit that he was having a lot of fun after such a long journey. Even the food tasted great; some dishes a lot better than the ones back at home in the village. He still had to be careful to not reveal his human origins, but he enjoyed talking to the Majin and Beast Digimon around him.

As the evening rolled around, many of the Digimon gathered near the bonfire for, as Tailmon said, "the best festival game of them all." She wouldn't give any more details, leaving it as a surprise as Wizarmon and Tailmon joined the group. Guilmon sat near the center of the circle of Digimon, holding the ball the kids played with earlier.

"Okay, are we all ready?" Guilmon called. "I'll go first!" He thought for a moment, rolling the ball around in his paws. "Let's see…the most interesting thing that happened to me this year….oh, I know! I'd say it was when I finally knocked down that tree that was blocking the view from my cave. Now I got a family of Floramon staying at my place!" He and everyone else laughed, until Guilmon caught the less-than-amused looks of said Floramon family nearby. Guilmon cleared his throat. "All right, all right everybody! Let me see some hands and paws and claws in the air! Who's going to be next?" Several of the Digimon around him waved and called out, excited to tell the next story. Guilmon decided on a fake-throw before tossing the ball to the elderly Babamon.

"This year, I lost my dear husband Jijimon." Babamon said.

"Quit telling everyone I'm dead!" an elderly voice shouted from nowhere, presumably Jijimon.

"Sometimes I can still hear his voice!" Babamon sobbed, tossing the ball aside.

"I'm getting the next one!" Tailmon whispered to Wizarmon.

The next Digimon was an old Mummymon, who began speaking rapidly in a language nobody could understand except the Majin, including Wizarmon. So while they laughed at the story, most everyone else looked quite confused. The Mummymon fell backwards laughing, tossing the ball as he did.

"This is it!" Tailmon ran to catch the ball. "I got it! I got—" She slipped and hit the dirt, the ball bouncing away from her to a Stingmon and Lilamon.

"I guess it's our turn." Stingmon said, staring dreamily at Lilamon. "This is the year I met the most gorgeous—"

"No, _you're _gorgeous." Lilamon cooed, leaning against the bug Digimon.

"You're gorgeous-er." Stingmon cooed back.

"Get a cave!" FlameWizardmon shouted, sending laughs from everyone else.

"If only Jijimon was alive." Babamon sighed.

"I told you, woman!" Jijimon shouted. "I'm right here!"

"I love you, buttercup!" The two lovebirds fell the ground hugging, the ball flying away from them.

"This has got to be it!" Tailmon jumped up to catch it, only to fall short yet again.

Wizarmon ended up catching the ball, chuckling. "Here you go, Tailmon."

Tailmon sighed. "_You _got to tell it, Wizarmon."

Wizarmon raised an eyebrow. "What?"

"That's right, Wizarmon." Guilmon confirmed. "You caught it, you tell it."

"Didn't you play this game when you were younger?" Tailmon asked.

Wizarmon looked around nervously, wondering how he would get himself out of this one. But the Digimon around him voiced their encouragements, so he eventually gave in. "All right, already. All right. Uh, you want to know what I did this year?" A round of agreements. "I went on the longest, hardest, most exhausting journey I've ever been on with the _biggest _pain in the neck I have ever met." He looked to Tailmon, who shrunk down sheepishly. But then Wizarmon laughed and pulled her into a headlock, ruffling her fur. "What do you expect from a little sister?" There was a collective "aww" from the crowd as Wizarmon and Tailmon laughed. Tailmon wiggled free of Wizarmon's grip and smiled warmly. Wizarmon laughed again. "Okay, little sister. Your turn." He tossed the ball to her.

"Let's hear it, Tailmon." Guilmon said. Everyone waiting expectantly, knowing Tailmon always had the best stories to tell.

"Okay, okay. Here we go." Tailmon cleared her throat. "This year I watched my mom in a life-and-death struggle against all odds battling possibly the most fiercest creature on the face of the earth. Okay, who's next?"

"What?" Wizarmon chuckled, knowing that couldn't possibly be the same story she wanted to tell before. Even the rest of the Digimon were astounded by the brevity.

"Wait, wait, wait a minute!" Guilmon laughed. "I think we _all _want to hear the rest of _that _one, Tailmon."

Tailmon put on a crafty smirk. "I thought you might say that. Hmm, let's see." She went into full-on, dramatic story mode. "It was probably the fifth or sixth most coldest day in my entire life. Me and Mom were eating fish, having a great time, when all of a sudden she pushes me into the bushes and tells me to be real quiet. She says 'I smell something.' So I started sniffing." She sniffed the air to emphasize her point. "There was something in the woods running right towards us, getting closer and closer." Several of the younger Digimon cowered a bit, and even the older Digimon looked a little tense. Wizarmon just chuckled lightly, admitting only to himself that Tailmon had quite the knack for storytelling. Tailmon paused, just for some dramatic effect. "And then, out of the tree, jumps the hunter!"

Everyone gasped, knowing the dangers of the hunters. But Wizarmon stared at Tailmon as her words echoed in his head. _It couldn't be…_

"And now, there's nowhere for Mom to go." Tailmon added, her tone a little fearful now at the memory. "The monster has her backed up against this giant glacier!"

Wizarmon's heart stopped.

* * *

_Ken panted a little, suddenly wondering what he got himself into by going after the thieving Holydramon. But it was too late to turn back, seeing how he caught the Beast's full attention. He lunged with his spear._

"The monster attacks—pop!" Tailmon narrated. "But Mom's too quick for him. And before he can do it again, she stands up real big and yells 'Go away!'"

_The Holydramon reared up, roaring at Ken. The raven-haired boy backed up, slipping off the edge of the cliff and falling to a ledge a short distance away. He heard his brothers' call in the distance._

* * *

"Then Mom smells more of them!" Tailmon continued. "There's a whole pack coming right at us!"

Wizarmon only half-paid attention, the memories crashing down on him.

* * *

"_Yamato, no! The Holydramon! Look behind you!"_

"So she runs out to stop them before they can get to me."

_Yamato swiped and stabbed his spear, swiftly and skillfully dodging Holydramon's attacks._

"And all around they're poking her with sticks!"

_Yamato stabbed his spear into the ice, jerking it loose and releasing the domino effect._

"_Yamato!"_

"The whole thing broke, and they fell into the water! There was ice everywhere! She couldn't hold her breath any longer before—pow! She burst out of the water! I've never been so scared in my life."

* * *

Wizarmon felt his heart rate increase as the realization dawned on him. The Holydramon that he fought, that he _killed_, was a female.

* * *

"_I'm going after the Holydramon."_

"_Don't blame the Holydramon."_

"_Tailmon?" Holydramon called, hoping to spot her child in the berry bushes._

_The feeling of the Holydramon's hot breath on his face._

"_Yamato wouldn't have wanted that."_

_The terror he felt as the beast charged for him._

"_Yamato's not here—because of that monster!"_

_The beast crashing down on him, his spear piercing her heart._

* * *

He killed Tailmon's mother.

"Whoa! Fell off a glacier?" Guilmon gasped in awe, as did the other Digimon. "I've never seen anything like that. Can you imagine?"

Wizarmon hyperventilated a little, everything rushing to him at once. Guilt, sadness, and panic waged war in his chest. "Wizarmon?" the Majin jumped as the white cat addressed him so worriedly. "What's the matter, Wizarmon?"

Luckily, Wizarmon was saved when several other Digimon began asking questions to Tailmon about her mother. As the feline assured them that her mother made it out all right, Wizarmon began backing up and away from everyone, only to hit Guilmon.

"Hey, Wizarmon, what's wrong?" the red dragon asked. But Wizarmon suddenly turned and ran off into the forest. "Where you going?"

"She got out of the water okay." Tailmon explained to everyone. "But that's how we got separated. Right after that, I met Wizarmon." She looked to said Digimon, but blinked and looked around. "Wizarmon?"

Wizarmon hardly had a destination in mind, as long as it was as far away from the festival as possible. _I killed her. I killed her I killed her I killed her I killed her I killed her…. _The words repeated over and over again in his head, making the guilt feel like a boulder on his shoulders. Branches from trees and bushes smacked at his face as he tore through the thick brush, as though to reprimand him for the murderous act. Finally, he burst out into a clear spot and skidded to a halt at a cliff. He panted heavily, looking up to see the Sovereign Lights dancing across the mountain in the near distance. Wizarmon glanced back to the Digimon at the Nomigid Festival, all of them chattering and laughing and enjoying themselves. Wizarmon paced back and forth across the rocky outcropping he stood on, muttering to himself. After a while, he stopped and looked to the Mountain Where the Lights Touch the Earth. Suddenly feeling nauseous, Wizarmon dropped his staff and stumbled over to a nearby bush, pulling down his cowl and vomiting bile and what was left of his dinner into the brush. He coughed and spit a few times, wanting to get the nasty taste out of his mouth but knowing he deserved it. Once he finished, he stumbled back to his staff and reached down to pick it up. But he paused; what would he do? Go back to the festival like nothing happened? Go back to Tailmon, who would just smile at him and assure him everything was okay? Smile at him, with her eyes full of happiness and love and trust….things he didn't deserve right now.

Wizarmon fell to his knees, his hands clenching into fists. He resisted the urge to scream, not wanting any attention drawn to him. But he could not stop his tears as they flowed freely down his cheeks. He sobbed openly, something he wouldn't have dreamed of doing were he Ken again. The sobs continued as the morning light disappeared and night descended, allowing the Sovereign Lights to shine brighter and bathe Wizarmon in their soft glow. The Majin looked up, tears still in his eyes, and locked his gaze on the Lights.

"Yamato…" He breathed, his throat clogged with sobs. "I…..I'm sorry, Yamato….I know…..what I did was unforgivable….I shouldn't have let my anger control me…..but what do I do? I can't…..I can't change what I've done…..Tailmon…how can I tell her? How am I supposed to tell this…..this _kid…_..that her mother is never coming home again? Tell me what to do, Yamato. Please."

No answer came, leaving Wizarmon to soak in his remorse and think of how he would give Tailmon the news.

* * *

**A/N: Wow. That was hard chapter to write at the end. I actually began crying. Hope you had tissues handy!**


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter Nine**

Tailmon didn't worry too much when Wizarmon didn't come back to the festival that night. It's when he didn't come back the next morning did she get a little concerned. Luckily, Guilmon was able to direct her towards where Wizarmon disappeared off to, and she discovered her Majin friend lying in a clear area, some feet away from a cliff that looked out towards the mountain where the Sovereign Lights touched. Wizarmon's back was to her, so the feline began prowling towards him. She knew he probably sensed her coming, but that didn't stop her from charging forward, letting out a ferocious yowl, and pouncing on her friend.

"Scared you again, huh?" Tailmon laughed.

Wizarmon hardly moved, staring at Tailmon as he sat up. He didn't sleep at all last night, yet he still didn't feel tired this morning. "Yeah…"

"Where have you been?" Tailmon asked. "You look horrible!"

"Tailmon…." Wizarmon started.

"My mom says when you eat too much, you should just lie down—" She went back to bouncing around a bit before settling beside Wizarmon.

"Tailmon." Wizarmon spoke softly, interrupting the cat. He sighed, his heart heavy. "There's something I, uh…..y-y-you know that story you told me last night?"

"Yeah." Tailmon nodded.

"Well I have a story to tell you." Wizarmon said.

"Really? What's it about?" Tailmon asked excitedly, pulling some berries off a bush nearby to munch on. She placed some closer to Wizarmon, but they remained untouched.

"Well, it's kind of about a human, and kind of about a Digimon." Wizarmon started, hardly noticing the snow beginning to fall. "But mostly it's about a monster…a monster who did something so bad….."

That's when Tailmon noticed the look in Wizarmon's eyes, and her smile dropped to a curious look as she gave her full attention to her friend.

Wizarmon sighed. "Once, there was a human boy. A boy who was taught all of the Sovereign's lessons but never fully understood them. He wanted nothing more than to become a man, but in order to do so his life needed to be guided by one thing: love. The boy didn't understand; how could love have anything to do with being a man? He rejected the Sovereign's teachings, believing he could accomplish his goal without them. One day, the boy's brother was killed by a Beast Digimon. The boy, who already hated Beast and Majin Digimon, became angry and sought revenge. That's when he became a monster. With hatred in his heart, he tracked down the Digimon whom he blamed for his brother's death: a Holydramon." Tailmon froze briefly here, but Wizarmon continued. "The monster and the Holydramon battled fiercely until the monster won, killing the Holydramon. He believed he did the right thing, and avenged his fallen kin. But the Sovereigns were angry, because the kill was not necessary. They came down from the heavens, and the monster was confused and a little fearful. But the Sovereigns decided that, rather than to punish him, they would teach him a lesson. They changed the monster, giving him another form, and sent him to take the place of the Holydramon. It wasn't exactly a punishment to reprimand the monster, but rather to teach him a lesson he'd forgotten long ago. He needed to know how to look through another's eyes, feel through another's heart, and live through another's life. Only then could he understand what he did." Wizarmon paused, staring towards the distance. "Tailmon….I did something very wrong."

Tailmon gulped quietly, going on all fours and backing up from Wizarmon. The tale was becoming far too eerie for her liking. Worst of all, she had a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach when she heard the victim of the boy's anger. "I don't like this story."

Wizarmon looked to Tailmon, her sapphire eyes full of fear, pleading him to say something comforting. But he couldn't. Not now, maybe not ever. He sighed. "Your mother's not coming."

Tailmon's eyes widened, then narrowed in thought, and then widened again in realization. She stared at Wizarmon, tears building up in her eyes and trickling down her cheeks. "No…..no!" Wizarmon moved forward, to comfort her somehow, but she suddenly took off into the forest.

"Tailmon!" Wizarmon called, but his voice fell upon deaf ears.

Tailmon tore through the brush, her paws making soft crunching sounds as they stepped into the snow. Snowflakes whipped past her and clung to her fur, but she didn't pause for a second. Wizarmon chased after her, unable to follow her tracks that blended in with the snow. Still, he continued in the direction she ran in hopes of catching up to her. _I have to apologize. I have to do something to make this better. Anything! _Wizarmon ignored the chill seeping through his boots and kept running. Tailmon didn't stop running until she noticed a good-size tree ahead of her. Not slowing down, she scaled the bark to the first branch that came into view and climbed up on it. Looking down to make sure she wasn't followed, the white cat curled into a ball and buried her face into the trunk of the tree, letting out the heartbreaking cries she previously kept in.

"Tailmon!" Wizarmon called, desperate to find the young Digimon. "Tailmon! _Tailmon!" _He panted a little from the running, stopping close to the tree Tailmon rested in but never seeing her. He held back his tears, the remorse choking him enough. "Tailmon, I wish I could….if there was—if there was just some way…"

Tailmon looked towards Wizarmon, but kept her back him and her face in the tree.

Wizarmon stumbled over his words. "I—I'd give anything if…." What could he do? An apology wouldn't bring back her mother. There was no power that could bring back the dead. He was stuck with this guilt and there was nothing he could do about it.

Tailmon ventured another look towards Wizarmon, almost analyzing his actions.

"I could just….." Wizarmon's calls long since lowered to whispers, and he sighed heavily. He looked up to see a line of icicles before him, his eyes locked onto his multiple reflections. A Majin Digimon stared back at him: blonde hair, gray skin, wizard's clothing, and dark jade green eyes. But before his eyes, the reflections seemed to ripple and change until Ken stared back: raven hair, pale skin, silvery-gray tunic, and dark lavender eyes. Wizarmon reached out to touch the reflection's hand, watching Ken fade away as his true reflection returned. Wizarmon sighed again, blinking tears back. "I'm sorry, Tailmon. I'm so sorry." He looked towards the Mountain Where the Lights Touched the Earth, knowing there was only one path left for him. So, with his staff dragging behind him, he began his journey to the mountain.

Tailmon, once Wizarmon traveled a good distance away, climbed down from the tree to watch him go. She felt the smallest bit of guilt for what she did, but at the same time she didn't know if she could forgive him for what he did. But she also didn't want to be left alone; he became such a good friend, even like a brother. Yet she feared him a bit.

Her emotions waged war in her heart, and she bowed her head in mourning.

* * *

Takeru tracked the Wizarmon for as long as he could, but soon the trail reached a dead end and he began wandering in desperation. He ended up in the mountains, which he supposed wouldn't have been so bad if it wasn't snowing. Not only snowing, but quite windy as well, and all he wore for extra layers was his cloak and a pair of mittens he'd packed. Though he tried to make a fire, the best he could do was a pitiful little flame that looked more like that of a large candle. He shivered and his teeth chattered, trying to stay warm while figuring out what he would do next. He looked to Ken's totem and his own, a rock carved in the shape of an angel, hoping for some sort of sign. Nothing came.

Takeru looked up as his fire suddenly blew out with the wind. He sighed, curling up in a tight ball. He missed his home, his friends…his brothers. "I'm sorry, Ken. I don't know what I'm doing anymore. I need help." He kept his head down and his eyes closed, hoping and praying for his "help."

Then, he felt the strangest feeling that something, or someone, watched him. Turning slowly, Takeru discovered a Garurumon standing just a few feet away, staring back at him with an intense gaze. Takeru lowered the hood of his cloak, staring at the wolf Digimon. The Garurumon woofed softly before bounding off, giving Takeru's cloak a brief tug as he went.

"Yamato?" Takeru breathed. He looked to his spear, the one still carrying Ken's totem, and a flame of determination rekindled within him. Grabbing the spear, he wasted no time in following the large wolf Digimon.

* * *

The snow crunched beneath their feet as they walked, or rather trudged, through the forest. "Look, I am sorry!" Pumpkinmon said for what felt like the thousandth time.

"If I was driving, this never would've happened." Gotsumon grumbled, not even looking at his brother.

"Just stop it." Pumpkinmon rolled his eyes, though he did feel a little guilty seeing how their "accident" causing Gotsumon to lose one of the rocks on his head that resembled ears.

"You never let me drive, you never let me do nothing." Gotsumon huffed.

"Oh, trample off, would ya?" Pumpkinmon groaned. "I said I was sorry. Let it go."

Clearly, Gotsumon wouldn't be ready to let it go anytime soon. "I can't believe you totaled a Mammothmon."

"Oh, come on!" Pumpkinmon complained. "That mountain came out of nowhere!"

"I'm afraid I cannot accept your apology." Gotsumon said.

"It was in my blind spot!" Pumpkinmon protested.

Gotsumon paused. "Hey, look."

"Wh-what?" Pumpkinmon asked, following Gotsumon's point.

"It's that little kitten." Gotsumon said, the two of them staring at Tailmon. The feline Digimon hadn't moved an inch all day, no matter how cold she felt. "Gee, something's bugging her."

"Yeah, what's wrong, smallish cat?" Pumpkinmon asked.

Tailmon sniffled. "Nothing. I'm fine."

"Oh good." Gotsumon nodded. "Now, where were we? Oh yeah!" He glared at Pumpkinmon. "You're a big, selfish, reckless crazy mon and you're never going to change!"

"What?!" Pumpkinmon huffed.

"I'm fed up with it." Gotsumon marched over to Tailmon. "From now on, _she's _my new brother!"

"You can't do that!" Pumpkinmon scoffed. "For more reasons than one."

"Sorry, you've been replaced with my dear bro—uh, sister…" Gotsumon put an arm around Tailmon, but paused. "Gee, I forget your name. What's your name again, little kitten?"

Tailmon pushed him away. "I don't want any more brothers." She sniffed again, not fully over her crying.

"See? She's had enough of you too!" Gotsumon snapped at Pumpkinmon.

"Aw, come on!" Pumpkinmon pleaded. "I promise I'll change."

"You'll never change." Gotsumon huffed, turning from his pumpkin-headed friend. "Being a brother means nothing to you."

"Of course it does." Pumpkinmon assured.

"Oh yeah, like what?" Gotsumon demanded. Suddenly curious, Tailmon looked to Pumpkinmon.

"What about the time your feet froze in the pond?" Pumpkinmon offered. "Who sat with you all winter?"

Gotsumon sighed. "You did….."

"And who showed you where all the good berries are? I mean, the really juicy stuff all covered in dew? Now why do you think I did that? Because I…" Pumpkinmon paused. "Because I love….dew…"

"Excuse me?" Gotsumon asked mockingly. "I don't believe I heard what you said."

Pumpkinmon sighed. "I said I love…..dew."

Gotsumon's anger dwindled away. "I love dew too."

Tailmon still watched with almost fascination as Pumpkinmon came up to his brother. "Hey, I can change."

"Go away." Gotsumon muttered.

"Come on, I can change." Pumpkinmon smiled, nudging the rock Digimon.

"Go away. Don't touch me." Gotsumon grumbled.

"I can change!" Pumpkinmon suddenly tickled Gotsumon's ribs, sending his brother into fits of laughter.

"Hey! Not…..not there!" Gotsumon gasped between laughs. "That's the spot!" He and Pumpkinmon laughed as the latter helped him up.

"We'll see ya later, smallish cat." Pumpkinmon said, ruffling Tailmon's fur on her head.

"Yeah, good day!" Gotsumon bid her farewell as he joined his brother. The two of them walked off, talking and laughing like they never fought in the first place. Tailmon felt their words echoing in her skull, and she began thinking about those times she shared with Wizarmon. She looked towards his tracks, leading away from her and towards the mountain. She knew he would be going up there, maybe already be there by now, and he would go there believing she hated him.

She _did _hate him…at least, she thought she did.


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter Ten**

Wizarmon breathed heavily as he hauled himself up onto another snowy ledge, the wind blowing so hard the snowflakes slapped at the bare skin on his face. He shivered, clutching his staff tightly in one hand. But he refused to give up; surely he was almost at the top by now. Perhaps his brother would hear him now.

"Yamato!" Wizarmon called over the wind. "Yamato, are you there?! Yamato!" But only the whistling wind returned his calls. Wizarmon sighed, every breath and word materializing into an icy cloud that blew away in the wind. "Please. Please, Yamato. I don't know what else to do." A pause, and then he noticed a shadow in the haze of the snow. From the looks of it, the shadow appeared to be in the form of a wolf. "Yamato?" Wizarmon watched as the shadow came closer until it burst through the wind, revealing not a wolf but a human carrying a spear. The human raised a mitten-covered hand and lowered his hood, revealing a terrifyingly familiar face.

"Takeru." Wizarmon breathed.

At last, Takeru realized that the Garurumon _was _Yamato, and he led the young hunter straight to his prey. He lunged forward with a shout of effort, raising his spear to strike the Wizarmon down.

Wizarmon backed up quickly, slipping and falling backwards in the snow. "Yamato, hurry! Change me back!" Takeru jumped towards him, thrusting the spear down. Wizarmon caught the boy's arm, desperately pushing back to keep the sharp weapon away from him. The two of them struggled fiercely for control until Wizarmon suddenly kicked his leg up and shoved Takeru off him. He scrambled to his feet and tried to run, but Takeru grabbed his foot and forced him to the snow once more. Takeru tried to pin the Majin to the ground, but Wizarmon jerked his elbow back and caught the boy's head, knocking him off and allowing the Digimon to stand. Takeru swung his spear around, but Wizarmon used his own staff to counter the weapon. Regretfully, he knew only one way to get Takeru away long enough for Yamato to change him back.

Once he was able to push Takeru back a few feet, Wizarmon took a breath and focused on the power within him. _"Magical Game!" _He pushed his staff forward, and blue lightning shot from the sun ornament of the wand. The lightning struck the ground at Takeru's feet, not hurting him but the shockwave knocking him back and into the snow. Wizarmon turned and ran for a nearby ledge, looking all around for his spirit brother. "Where are you, Yamato?!" He panted heavily. Where was Yamato? Why wasn't he coming to help?

Wizarmon grunted as Takeru jumped on him from behind, putting the shaft of his spear to Wizarmon's throat and pulling back in hopes of choking him. Wizarmon fought to get free, only for the struggle to send both of them tumbling down the mountainside to another flat spot several yards down. Wizarmon shakily rose to his feet, swaying but using his staff to steady himself. Looking to his brother, he was shocked to see Takeru lying very still. He hurried to his brother's side, kneeling beside him. But not two seconds later, Takeru suddenly shot up and tackled Wizarmon to the ground, pinning him to the snow by the throat. Wizarmon gasped and strained a bit, clawing at Takeru's hand on his neck. With his free hand, Takeru pulled a dagger from his belt.

"Takeru." Wizarmon gasped, knowing his brother wouldn't even understand him. "Takeru, please."

Takeru, the murderous glare still in his eyes, raised the knife to plunge it into Wizarmon's chest.

He hardly made another move before a furious yowl rang out, and something small and white slammed into him.

Wizarmon gasped as Takeru's grip released from his throat, the boy and his attacker tumbling to one side. Wizarmon sat up, wondering who could've saved him, and his eyes widened. "Tailmon?"

The feline Digimon stared at Wizarmon with wide eyes, panting a bit, as though shocked by her bout of bravery.

Takeru sat up, looking back and forth between the two Digimon but paying more attention to Wizarmon as the Majin rose, taking up his staff. The blonde boy's eyes darted around for a moment before he caught sight of his spear, not too far away. He immediately began running for it. Unfortunately for him, Tailmon noticed what he targeted, and she darted off ahead of him to grab the weapon.

Wizarmon's eyes widened. "No!" He took off running towards the cat and his brother.

Tailmon scooped up the spear in her teeth, practically dragging it away since it was so long, and kept running with Takeru close behind her. Takeru picked up speed, determined to get the weapon from her.

"Leave her alone!" Wizarmon shouted, desperately willing himself to move faster. Soon, he actually lifted off the ground and flew towards them, the wind only slowing him down slightly.

"Give me that!" Takeru snapped, panting heavily.

Suddenly, Tailmon tripped and tumbled, the spear falling from her mouth.

Takeru dove down to catch it.

A Garurumon bounded over the rocks, his body glowing gold.

"_Tailmon!"_

Takeru turned, spear raised, just as the Wizarmon came down on him.

Wizarmon's scream rang out over the air, and in a flash the Sovereign Lights appeared.

* * *

Down at the Nomigid Festival, every single Digimon stopped what they were doing and stared up at the mountain. None of them could explain the scream they just heard, nor why the night rainbow seemed to have appeared much earlier than usual. They could only pray no poor soul was injured.

* * *

Takeru kept his eyes closed from the impact, but the lights forced him to open his eyes and see what happened. His cerulean orbs widened at the sight of the Sovereign Lights, and his gaze locked onto a spiritual Garurumon walking down a hill of air, carrying the unharmed Wizarmon in his teeth. Takeru jumped a little as the snow around him suddenly and quite literally melted into a flowery field, but his attention returned to the Wizarmon as the Garurumon set him down before the hunter. The Wizarmon became shrouded in tendrils of light, and he gasped as he suddenly changed back to…..

"Ken?" Takeru breathed.

Ken breathed a little heavily, staring at his pale hands and his entire pale-skin body. He tugged on his now-short hair, finding raven locks once more. If he could look in a mirror, he'd see dark lavender eyes. He was human; freezing cold and completely naked, but he was human again. He looked to Takeru, who stared back at him in shock. They looked up at a howl, and the Garurumon walked up to them. As the Digimon did, swirls of light suddenly transformed him into a now-smiling Yamato, still in the same clothes he died in. Ken smiled warmly at his deceased brother, mentally laughing at Takeru's shocked face.

Yamato, still smiling, approached Takeru and gently lowered the spear, untying Ken's totem from the weapon. "Yamato?" Takeru asked, his jaw dropped. Yamato only shut the younger blonde's mouth and took the cloak from his back, walking back over to Ken. Takeru, finally able to process it all, suddenly threw his spear down and stood up, watching Yamato approach Ken and wrap Takeru's cloak around his shoulders. Ken pulled the cloak tighter around him, willing the cold to go away but still smiling warmly. He was back. He was a human again. The Sovereigns forgave him. But did they have to wait so long to do it? Why did Yamato have to wait until his brother almost died to change him back? Did he like seeing the déjà vu of Ken's almost death? After all, if Yamato didn't save Ken when he did, Ken would've died the same way Holydramon did. Except…..he jumped because he was trying to protect—

A small _meow _caught their attention, and the three brothers turned to see Tailmon cowering behind some rocks nearby. Clearly, the sight of three humans made the Digimon uneasy, whether or not she saw the transformation of her friend. Ken sighed, walking over towards the feline Digimon. Tailmon, eyes wide with fear, shrunk back further behind the rocks as Ken knelt down before her.

"Tailmon. Tailmon, don't be afraid." Ken soothed. "It's me."

Tailmon stared at Ken for a moment, and something flashed of familiarity. Her eyes widened and she jumped forward into his arms, snuggling deep into his embrace and purring loudly. Ken, in turn, chuckled and held her close, rubbing her fur. But his face fell; Tailmon was still an orphan. On top of that, she was his friend, his _sister. _What could he do? Bring her back to the village? To the "monsters" that caused the death of so many of her kin? Yamato and Takeru watched from a short distance away, and Takeru's face fell. Though he was happy to have his brother back, it seemed Ken had formed a bond with someone else during his time as Digimon. Something in Takeru's stomach told him it wouldn't be right to ask Ken to come back.

Ken pulled Tailmon back, staring at her. Tailmon meowed again, as though to ask if he was okay. She could've been asking a million different things, but Ken would never be able to understand her. But he could see it in her eyes. He pulled her in close again, sighing. Tailmon rubbed her head against his cheek, purring. Ken sniffed, blinking back tears, and looked up as Yamato approached. The spirit held out his hand, revealing Ken's totem lying in his palm. Ken took the stone, staring at the very thing he once rejected. Tailmon meowed again, looking confused. Ken sighed, looking up to his brothers.

"She needs me." He said.

Takeru looked down, but then smiled warmly. "You know, he _did _look better as a Digimon." Yamato never stopped smiling, but this time he looked to Ken with a raised eyebrow.

Ken laughed, but frowned worriedly. If he went through with this, when would he see his brother again? "But…..Takeru."

"It's all right, Ken." Takeru assured, approaching his brother. Ken smiled and gently set Tailmon down, walking up to meet his brother. Tailmon watched curiously until a light caught her eye. She turned and gasped softly. Takeru took Ken's totem and placed it around his neck. "No matter what you choose, you'll always be my little brother." Ken smiled warmly, looking down at his totem. He looked back up to Takeru, who held a hand up. Ken's smile grew, as if it were possible at that point, and he clapped his hand against his brother's. Yamato smiled at the sight and nodded, allowing the magic to be set in motion. Takeru pulled his raven-haired brother into a tight embrace as golden swirls of light surrounded him, starting his transformation once more. Takeru stepped back to look at his brother, now once again a Digimon. "Huh. You look pretty good as a blonde."

Wizarmon laughed, the sound coming out like rolling thunder. Yamato approached them, and the three of them came together in a warm hug: the spirit, the human, and the Digimon. When they pulled apart, they turned and smiled at the sight before them. Tailmon stood with a ghostly Holydramon, rubbing heads with her mother lovingly. Holydramon smiled at her daughter, clearly proud. Tailmon smiled back, soaking in her mother's warmth one last time. Yamato broke away from his brothers and Holydramon regretfully moved away from her daughter. The two spirits ran off into the lights above, Yamato transforming to his Garurumon form, and they disappeared. Wizarmon approached Tailmon, his mind racing with what he could say to her.

Tailmon moved first. The second she saw her brother she cried "Wizarmon!" and tackled him to the ground. The two of them romped around and played, soon joined by Takeru. They laughed and played under the Sovereign Lights, feeling happier than they felt in a long time.

* * *

Drums sounded and the villagers danced happily, only pausing as Renamon stepped through with a torch in her hand. It was just like the ceremony they held a few weeks prior, only this time for a much more special reason.

_My brother Ken went on to live with Tailmon and the other Digimon. He taught me that love is very powerful._

Renamon handed Takeru the torch, which he then threw onto the bonfire before them and lit it. The villagers erupted into cheers, and Renamon hugged the blonde boy with a proud smile on her face.

_And I passed on the wisdom of his story to our people—the story of a boy who became a man…by becoming a Digimon._

The villagers parted again, this time to let Wizarmon through as he walked proudly up to Takeru and Renamon. Tailmon waved from her spot amongst the children, smiling in awe. Wizarmon wore his totem around his neck, this time with pride, as he approached Takeru and the two of them shared a quick embrace. Then he removed one of his gloves and allowed Takeru to guide his hand into the paint and then up to the wall. He pressed his hand to the cool stone, and when he pulled it away his handprint made of jagged lines rested amongst those of his ancestors. Wizarmon smiled proudly, his eyes sparkling with joy. The villagers cheered for their newly appointed man, and Renamon smiled proudly, giving a nod of satisfaction towards the Majin. Tailmon came over to stand with Wizarmon, jumping into his arms and hugging him tightly. Takeru ruffled the cat's fur on her head, causing her to laugh. The two brothers and sister stood before the cheering crowd, soaking in the warmth of the moment.

A Garurumon stood on a hill overlooking the ceremonies, and he smiled warmly as he howled.

**THE END**


End file.
